Grip Assembly for Vehicle

ABSTRACT

A lever system using a linkage assembly creates linear movement from a rotational movement of a lever. The lever system may be arranged as a grip assembly to activate a braking system of a vehicle. The linkage assembly may include a slide linkage, a bearing linkage, and a pivot linkage such that the lever may cause an end of the bearing linkage and an end of the pivot linkage to move toward the slide linkage, which causes the slide linkage to move in a linear direction. The grip assembly may have a lever that is pivotally connected with a housing of the grip assembly at a predetermined distance and with a contact region to prevent rotational movement in one direction while allowing rotational movement in the opposite direction. Further, the grip assembly may include a bearing linkage that is pivotally connected to the lever.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.17/478,519 filed on Sep. 17, 2021, which is a continuation-in-part ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/892,112 filed on Jun. 3, 2020. Theabove referenced application is incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Aspects of the disclosure relate to actuation systems in general relatedto lever assemblies contained within an enclosure or at least partiallywithin an enclosure.

BACKGROUND

Many types of mechanical devices may be used to activate different typesof mechanisms. Lever and linkage assemblies may be used to reduce theforce needed to activate a mechanical system or change a force exertedin one direction to cause movement in a different direction. As anexample, in braking or throttle systems for vehicles, such as abicycles, scooters, or motorcycles, an externally mounted lever may beutilized to exert a force on a cable or hydraulic braking system toactivate the brakes. However, the externally mounted lever may becumbersome and difficult for some users to operate.

SUMMARY

This Summary introduces some general concepts relating to thisdisclosure in a simplified form that are further described below in theDetailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify keyfeatures or essential features of the disclosure.

In some aspects, this disclosure may relate to a lever system thatincludes a housing, a lever, and a linkage assembly. The housing mayhave a first end, a second end opposite the first end, and a housingbody extending between the first end and the second end, where the firstend has a first opening that extends into an interior cavity, and asecond opening on a lower portion of the housing that extends into theinterior cavity. The first axis may define a longitudinal axis of thegrip assembly. The lever may have a first end that is pivotally engagedat a first location with the housing, a second end opposite the firstend, and a lever body extending between the first end and the secondend. The linkage assembly may include: (a) a slide linkage having afirst end, a second end opposite the first end, and a slide linkage bodyextending between the first end and the second end; (b) a bearinglinkage having a first end pivotally engaged with the slide linkage anda second end opposite the first end; and (c) a pivot linkage having afirst end pivotally engaged with the housing at a second location andalso slidably engaged with the slide linkage and a second end oppositethe first end that is pivotally engaged with the second end of thebearing linkage. When the lever rotates toward the interior cavity, thesecond end of the bearing linkage and the second end of the pivotlinkage may both move toward the slide linkage causing the slide linkageto move along the longitudinal axis. In some examples, the slide linkagemay move toward the first opening when the lever rotates toward theinterior cavity, while in other examples, the slide linkage may moveaway from the first opening when the lever rotates toward the interiorcavity. The slide linkage may have a receiver near the first end thatreceives a cable, where the cable is part of a braking system for avehicle. The slide linkage may connect to a piston that is configured toattach to a hydraulic line of a braking system for a vehicle. The secondend of the bearing linkage and the second end of the pivot linkage maybe connected to a first roller bearing. The lever body may include apocket with a bottom surface, where the first roller bearing contactsthe bottom surface. The first end of the lever may be enclosed withinthe housing and a portion of the lever body extends through the secondopening. The housing may include an edge on the second opening thatprovides a stop to limit rotation of the lever in a direction away fromthe interior cavity. The housing body may include a first member havingthe first opening and a curved upper surface and a second member havingthe second opening, where the interior cavity is formed when the firstmember and the second member are joined together. The first member andthe second member may be releasably joined together.

Other aspects of this disclosure may relate to a grip assembly thatincludes a housing, a lever, and a linkage assembly. The housing mayhave a first end, a second end opposite the first end, and a housingbody extending between the first end and the second end, where the firstend has a first opening that extends into an interior cavity, and asecond opening on a lower portion of the housing that extends into theinterior cavity. The first opening may define a longitudinal axis of thegrip assembly. A lever may have a first end that is pivotally engaged ata first location with the housing, a second end opposite the first end,and a lever body extending between the first end and the second end. Alinkage assembly may include: (a) a slide linkage having a first end, asecond end opposite the first end, and a slide linkage body extendingbetween the first end and the second end, where the first end of theslide linkage is configured to connect to a brake cable; (b) a bearinglinkage having a first end pivotally engaged with the slide linkage, asecond end opposite the first end, and a bearing linkage body extendingbetween the first end and the second end, where the first end of thebearing linkage is nearer the second end of the slide linkage than thefirst end of the slide linkage; and (c) a pivot linkage having a firstend pivotally engaged with the housing at a second location and alsoslidably engaged with the slide linkage and a second end opposite thefirst end that is pivotally engaged with the second end of the bearinglinkage, where the first end of the pivot linkage is connected to theslide linkage nearer the first end of the slide linkage than the secondend of the slide linkage. When the lever rotates toward the interiorcavity, the second end of the bearing linkage and the second end of thepivot linkage may move towards the slide linkage causing the slidelinkage to move away from the first opening. The second end of the slidelinkage may connect to a first roller bearing. The first end of thelever may be enclosed within the housing and a portion of the lever bodyextends through the second opening. The housing body may include a firstmember having the first opening and a curved upper surface and a secondmember having the second opening, where the interior cavity is formedwhen the first member and the second member are joined together.

Still other aspects of this disclosure may relate to a grip assemblythat includes a housing, a lever, and a linkage assembly. The housingmay have a first end, a second end opposite the first end, and a housingbody extending between the first end and the second end, where the firstend has a first opening that extends into an interior cavity, and asecond opening on a lower portion of the housing that extends into theinterior cavity. The first opening may define a longitudinal axis of thegrip assembly. The lever may have a first end that is pivotally engagedat a first location with the housing, a second end opposite the firstend, and a lever body extending between the first end and the secondend. The linkage assembly may include: (a) a slide linkage having afirst end, a second end opposite the first end, and a slide linkage bodyextending between the first end and the second end, where the first endof the slide linkage is configured to connect to a piston; (b) a bearinglinkage having a first end pivotally engaged with the slide linkage, asecond end opposite the first end, and a bearing linkage body extendingbetween the first end and the second end, where the first end of thebearing linkage is nearer the first end of the slide linkage than thesecond end of the slide linkage; and (c) a pivot linkage having a firstend pivotally engaged with the housing at a second location and alsoslidably engaged with the slide linkage and a second end opposite thefirst end that is pivotally engaged with the second end of the bearinglinkage, where the first end of the pivot linkage is connected to theslide linkage nearer the second end of the slide linkage than the firstend of the slide linkage. When the lever rotates toward the interiorcavity, the second end of the bearing linkage and the second end of thepivot linkage may move toward the slide linkage causing the slidelinkage to move toward from the first opening. The first end of thelever is enclosed within the housing and a portion of the lever bodyextends through the second opening. The first opening may be locatedwithin a recess on the housing, where the recess is configured toreceive a tubular member from a handlebar of a vehicle. The housing bodymay include a first member having the first opening and a curved uppersurface and a second member having the second opening, where theinterior cavity is formed when the first member and the second memberare joined together. A first roller bearing may be connected near thefirst end of the slide linkage and the first roller bearing contacts aninterior surface of the housing.

Additional aspects of this disclosure may relate to a grip assembly fora vehicle comprising: (a) a housing having a first end, a second endopposite the first end, and a housing body extending between the firstend and the second end, where the housing includes a curved outwardfacing surface along a top side of the housing, the first end of thehousing has a first opening that extends into an interior cavity, and asecond opening located on a bottom side of the housing opposite the topside that extends into the interior cavity, and the first openingreceives a handlebar of the vehicle; and (b) a lever having a first end,a second end opposite the first end, and a lever body extending betweenthe first end and the second end, the lever being pivotally connected tothe housing at a lever pivot that is located a predetermined distancefrom the first end of the lever, where the lever body includes a bottomwall that extends from a first end of the lever to the second end of thelever, a pair of lever side walls, and an end wall at the second end.The lever may also include an inboard region located between the firstend of the lever and the lever pivot and configured to contact an indexfinger of a user and an outboard region located between the second endof the lever and the lever pivot and configured for a pinky finger ofthe user, where the inboard region may include a contact region thatcontacts a stop to prevent rotational movement of the lever toward thehousing when a force is applied to the inboard region. The grip assemblyalso includes a pivot linkage having a first end pivotally engaged withthe housing, a second end opposite the first end, and a bearing linkagehaving a first end with a first roller bearing and a second end oppositethe first end that is pivotally engaged with the second end of the pivotlinkage at a pivot connection, where the first roller bearing movesalong an interior surface of the housing. The grip assembly may beutilized to operate a brake system such that when the outboard region ofthe lever rotates toward the interior cavity of the housing, the firstend of the bearing linkage moves away from the first end of the housingcausing a brake system of the vehicle to engage a wheel of the vehicle.The bearing linkage may be connected to a cable of the brake system. Thelever may include an interior bearing surface that contacts a secondroller bearing arranged at the pivot connection, where the interiorbearing surface comprises a convex curved surface. In some examples, thestop that contacts the contact region may be integrally formed with thehousing. In addition, a clamp may secure the handlebar to the housing,where the clamp forms the stop that contacts the contact region of thelever. The lever pivot may be positioned a predetermined distance fromthe first end of the lever, where the predetermined distance is within arange of 25 percent and 50 percent of an overall length of the lever. Insome examples, the lever pivot may be positioned a predetermineddistance from the first end of the lever, where the predetermineddistance is within a range of 10 percent and 90 percent of an overalllength of the lever.

Other aspects of the disclosure may relate to a grip assembly for avehicle comprising: (a) a housing having a first end, a second endopposite the first end, and a housing body extending between the firstend and the second end, where the first end has a first opening thatextends into an interior cavity, and a second opening of the housingthat extends into the interior cavity, where the first opening receivesa handlebar of the vehicle; (b) a lever having a first end, a second endopposite the first end, and a lever body extending between the first endand the second end, the lever pivotally connected to the housing at alever pivot that is located a predetermined distance from the first endof the lever, where the lever includes an inboard region located betweenthe first end of the lever and the lever pivot and configured to contactan index finger of a user and an outboard region located between thesecond end of the lever and the lever pivot and configured for a pinkyfinger of the user; (c) a bearing linkage having a first end pivotallyconnected to the lever at a first linkage pivot and a second end of thebearing linkage connected to a cable anchor opposite the first end ofthe bearing linkage; and (d) a swing linkage having a first endpivotally connected to the second end of the bearing linkage at a secondlinkage pivot and a second end of the swing linkage pivotally connectedto the housing at a third linkage pivot. The inboard region of the levermay include a contact region that contacts a stop to prevent rotationalmovement of the lever when a force is applied to the inboard region ofthe lever. The grip assembly may be utilized to operate a brake systemsuch that when the outboard region of the lever rotates toward theinterior cavity, the second end of the bearing linkage moves away fromthe first end of the housing causing a brake system of the vehicle toengage a wheel of the vehicle. The stop that contacts the contact regionmay be integrally formed with the housing. In some examples, a clamp maysecure the handlebar to the housing, where the clamp forms the stop thatcontacts the contact region. Additionally, the clamp may include anaperture that receives a cable from the brake system, where the cableconnects to the cable anchor and extends through the aperture. The leverpivot may be positioned a predetermined distance from the first end ofthe lever, where the predetermined distance is within a range of 25percent and 50 percent of an overall length of the lever. The contactregion may comprise a boss on an interior surface of the lever. Thehousing may include an aperture that receives a cable from the brakesystem, where the cable connects to the cable anchor and extends throughthe aperture and into the handlebar, where the aperture includes atapered opening that leads to a receiver configured to receive a cablecasing.

Yet other aspects of this disclosure may include a grip assembly for avehicle comprising: (a) a housing having a first end, a second endopposite the first end, and a housing body extending between the firstend and the second end, where the first end has a first opening thatextends into an interior cavity, and a second opening of the housingthat extends into the interior cavity, and where the first openingreceives a handlebar of the vehicle; (b) a lever having a first end, asecond end opposite the first end, and a lever body extending betweenthe first end and the second end, where the lever is pivotally connectedto the housing at a lever pivot that is located a predetermined distancefrom the first end of the lever; and (c) a bearing linkage having afirst end with a first roller bearing and a second end of the bearinglinkage is pivotally connected to the lever with a linkage pivot wherethe first roller bearing moves along an interior surface of the housing,and where a cable anchor is connected to the first end of the bearinglinkage. The lever may include an inboard region located between thefirst end of the lever and the lever pivot and configured to contact anindex finger of a user and an outboard region located between the secondend of the lever and the lever pivot and configured for a pinky fingerof the user, where the inboard region includes a contact region thatcontacts a stop to prevent rotational movement of the lever when a forceis applied to the inboard region. The grip assembly may be utilized tooperate a brake system such that when the outboard region of the leverrotates toward the interior cavity, the first end of the bearing linkagemoves away from the first end of the housing causing a brake system ofthe vehicle to engage a wheel of the vehicle. The interior surface ofthe housing that contacts the first roller bearing may be angledrelative to an upper edge of the housing, where a distance from anoutboard end of the interior surface is closer to the upper edge of thehousing than an inboard end of the interior surface. The second end ofthe housing may include an access opening to allow access to theinterior cavity of the housing. A clamp may be attached to the housingto secure the handlebar to the housing, where the clamp forms the stopthat contacts the contact region, where the clamp includes an aperturethat receives a cable from the brake system, and where the cableconnects to the cable anchor and extends through the aperture. Thehousing may include an aperture that receives a cable from the brakesystem, where the cable connects to the cable anchor and extends throughthe aperture and into the handlebar.

Additional aspects of this disclosure may relate to a grip assembly fora vehicle comprising: (a) a housing having a first end, a second endopposite the first end, and a housing body extending between the firstend and the second end, where the first end has a first opening thatextends into an interior cavity, and a second opening of the housingthat extends into the interior cavity, and where the first openingreceives a handlebar of the vehicle; (b) a lever having a first end, asecond end opposite the first end, and a lever body extending betweenthe first end and the second end, the lever pivotally connected to thehousing at a lever pivot that is located a predetermined distance fromthe first end of the lever, where the lever includes an inboard regionlocated between the first end of the lever and the lever pivot andconfigured to contact an index finger of a user and an outboard regionlocated between the second end of the lever and the lever pivot andconfigured for a pinky finger of the user, the inboard region having acontact region that contacts a stop to prevent rotational movement ofthe lever when a force is applied to the inboard region; and (c) abearing linkage having a first end pivotally connected to the lever at afirst linkage pivot and a second end of the bearing linkage connected toa piston, where the piston is slidably connected to a hydraulic cylinderthat connects to a hydraulic line that is part of a hydraulic brakingsystem. The grip assembly may be utilized to operate a brake system suchthat when the outboard region of the lever rotates toward the interiorcavity of the housing, the second end of the bearing linkage pushes onthe piston causing the hydraulic brake system of the vehicle to engage awheel of the vehicle. The hydraulic cylinder is secured within theinterior cavity of the housing, where the hydraulic line may extend fromthe hydraulic cylinder and then extend into the handlebar of thevehicle. In some examples, the hydraulic cylinder may be secured to thelever, where the hydraulic line may extend from the hydraulic cylinderand then extend outside of the handlebar of the vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Example embodiments of the disclosure will now be described by way ofexample only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of an exemplary grip assembly witha lever system for a vehicle according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 2A illustrates a schematic of the exemplary grip assembly of FIG. 1connected to a brake system of a vehicle according to aspects disclosedherein.

FIG. 2B illustrates a perspective view of the exemplary grip assembly ofFIG. 1 connected to a vehicle according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 3A illustrates a perspective exploded view of the exemplary gripassembly of FIG. 1 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 3B illustrates a perspective exploded view of the linkage assemblyof FIG. 3A according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 4 illustrates a front view of the exemplary grip assembly of FIG. 1according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 5 illustrates a rear view of the exemplary grip assembly of FIG. 1according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 6 illustrates a top view of the exemplary grip assembly of FIG. 1according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 7 illustrates a cross-sectional front view of the exemplary gripassembly of FIG. 1 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 8 illustrates a bottom view of the exemplary grip assembly of FIG.1 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 9 illustrates a left side view of the exemplary grip assembly ofFIG. 1 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 10 illustrates a right side view of the exemplary grip assembly ofFIG. 1 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 11A illustrates a perspective view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 1 with some components removed for clarity according to aspectsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 11B illustrates a perspective view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 1 with some components removed for clarity according to aspectsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 11C illustrates a perspective view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 1 with some components removed for clarity according to aspectsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 12 illustrates a perspective view of an alternate exemplary gripassembly for a vehicle with a lever system according to aspectsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 13 illustrates a perspective exploded view of the linkage assemblyof the grip assembly of FIG. 12 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 14A illustrates a perspective view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 12 with some components removed for clarity according to aspectsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 14B illustrates a perspective view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 12 with some components removed for clarity according to aspectsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 14C illustrates a perspective view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 12 with some components removed for clarity according to aspectsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 15 illustrates a front view of another exemplary grip assembly witha lever system for a vehicle according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 16 illustrates an outboard side view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 15 connected to a vehicle according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 17 illustrates an inboard side view of the exemplary grip assemblyof FIG. 15 connected to a vehicle according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 18 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 15 along line 18-18 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 19 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 15 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 20 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 18 along line 20-20 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 21 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of an alternate gripassembly according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 22 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 21 along line 22-22 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 23 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 21 along line 23-23 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 24 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 21 along line 24-24 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 25 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 21 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 26 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of an alternate gripassembly according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 27 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 26 along line 27-27 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 28 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 26 along line 28-28 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 29 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 26 along line 29-29 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 30 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 26 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 31 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 26 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 32 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 26 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 33 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 26 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 34 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the alternate gripassembly of FIG. 26 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 35 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assemblyaccording to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 36 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 35 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 37 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 35 along line 37-37 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 38 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 35 along line 38-38 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 39 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 35 along line 39-39 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 40 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the alternate gripassembly according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 41 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 40 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 42 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 40 along line 42-42 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 43 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 40 along line 43-43 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 44 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 40 along line 44-44 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 45 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the alternate gripassembly according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 46 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 45 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 47 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the alternate gripassembly according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 48 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 47 according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 49 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the alternate gripassembly according to aspects disclosed herein.

FIG. 50 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the grip assembly ofFIG. 47 according to aspects disclosed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of various examples of lever assembliesthat may be contained or partially contained within an enclosure. In oneexample, the lever assembly may be a portion of a grip assembly for abraking system of a vehicle as described herein. In this disclosure,reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a parthereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration various examplestructures and environments in which aspects of the disclosure may bepracticed.

It is to be understood that other structures and environments may beutilized and that structural and functional modifications may be madefrom the specifically described structures without departing from thescope of the present disclosure. However, those skilled in the art willreadily appreciate that the disclosure herein is not limited to thescales, dimensions, proportions, and/or orientations shown in thefigures. Also, while the terms “center”, “top,” “bottom,” “front,”“back,” “left,” “right,” “side,” “rear,” and the like may be used inthis specification to describe various example features and elements ofthe disclosure, these terms are used herein as a matter of convenience,e.g., based on the example orientations shown in the figures or theorientation during typical use. Additionally, the term “plurality,” asused herein, indicates any number greater than one, either disjunctivelyor conjunctively, as necessary, up to an infinite number. Nothing inthis specification should be construed as requiring a specificthree-dimensional orientation of structures in order to fall within thescope of this disclosure. The reader is advised that the attacheddrawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

The examples described herein provide for a lever system that is locatedin or at least partially located in an enclosure such that the linkageassembly may allow for vertical or rotational movement of a lever tocause a linear movement through a linkage assembly. In some examples,the lever system may be located within an enclosure used for a gripassembly for a vehicle where the lever assembly may be connected to abraking or throttle system for a vehicle such as a bicycle, scooter,motorcycle, or other type of vehicle. The grip assembly may be used forother systems that requires linear movement that is activated by arotating lever, such as a safety knife, or other type of system.

FIGS. 1-11C illustrate an example lever system 100 that is arranged as agrip assembly 102 to activate a braking system 10 of a vehicle 20.Braking system 10 in the examples of 1-11C may be a hydraulic brakingsystem with a hydraulic line 14 routed inside the handlebar 22 such thatthe hydraulic line is not externally visible at the intersection of thegrip assembly 102. The grip assembly 102 may include a housing 110, alever 130, and a linkage assembly 140, where the lever 130 may be atleast partially located within an interior cavity 114 of the housing110. The linkage assembly 140 may be at least partially enclosed withinthe housing 110 and may include three primary linkage members such as aslide linkage 150, a bearing linkage 160, and a pivot linkage 170, wherethe linkage members are pivotally engaged with each other. For example,the slide linkage 150 may be pivotally engaged with the bearing linkage160 and the pivot linkage 170, while the bearing linkage 160 and thepivot linkage 170 may be pivotally engaged with each other. The lever130 may also be pivotally attached to the housing 110 such that when auser applies a force to the lever 130, the lever 130 rotates toward theinterior cavity 114 of the housing 110. As the lever 130 rotates towardthe interior cavity 114, a portion of the bearing linkage 160 and aportion of the pivot linkage 170 both move toward the slide linkage 150causing the slide linkage 150 to move along a longitudinal axis 104 ofthe grip assembly 102.

As shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, 7, and 11A-C, the linkage assembly 140 mayinclude three primary linkage members 150, 160, 170. The linkage members150, 160, 170 may form a substantially triangular shape when connected.In this example, the slide linkage 150 may have a first end 151, asecond end 152, and a slide linkage body 153 extending between the firstend 151 and the second end 152. Similarly, the bearing linkage 160 mayhave a first end 161, a second end 162 opposite the first end 161, andbearing linkage body 163 extending between the first end 161 and thesecond end 162, and the pivot linkage 170 may have a first end 171, asecond end 172 opposite the first end 171, and pivot linkage body 173extending between the first end 171 and the second end 172. In someexamples, the first end 151 of the slide linkage 150 is configured toconnect to a piston 12 of the hydraulic braking system 10 such that thepiston is configured to push fluid within a hydraulic line 14 of thehydraulic braking system 10.

The linkage assembly 140 may be arranged such that the first end 161 ofthe bearing linkage 160 is pivotally connected nearer the first end 151of the slide linkage 150 than the second end 152 of the slide linkage150. The first end 161 of the bearing linkage 160 may be received in aforward slot 154. Forward slot 154 may extend through an upper and lowersurface of the slide linkage body 153. In addition, the first end 161 ofthe bearing linkage may have an opening 164 that receives a pin 141 thatextends through the opening 164 and through an opening 155 of the slidelinkage body 153 to pivotally connect the bearing linkage 160 to theslide linkage 150. Further, the pivot linkage 170 may be pivotally andslidably connected to the slide linkage 150 nearer the second end 152 ofthe slide linkage 150 than the first end 151. The pivot linkage body 173may have a first clevis 174 at the first end 171 that receives a portionof the slide linkage body 153. The pivot linkage 170 may have a clevis174, 176 at each end. First clevis 174 may receive a portion of theslide linkage body 153 and may connect to the slide linkage body 153with a pin 142 that extends through an opening 175 in the first clevis174 of the pivot linkage 170 through a rear slot 156. Rear slot 156 mayextend through the front and rear surfaces of the slide linkage body153. Pin 142 may also connect the slide linkage 150 and the pivotlinkage 170 to the housing 110. By fixing the pin 142 to the housing110, the slide linkage 150 may move relative to the housing 110 in adirection toward and away from opening 115. The second end 162 of thebearing linkage body may have a clevis 165 that receives a rollerbearing 143, and the second end 172 of the pivot linkage 170 may have asecond clevis 176 that receives the second end 162 of the bearinglinkage 160. Pin 144 may extend through opening 166 in clevis 165,opening 177 in second clevis 176, and through the roller bearing 143 toconnect the bearing linkage 160, the pivot linkage 170, and the rollerbearing 143 together. In addition, a second roller bearing 145 may bemounted within the forward slot 154 of the slide linkage 150. The secondroller bearing 145 may contact and roll along an interior guide surface125 located on the first member 118 of the housing 110 as shown in FIG.7 . In some examples, the length of the bearing linkage 160 and thelength of the pivot linkage 170 may be substantially the same length, orwithin 10 percent of the length of each other. The length of the bearinglinkage 160 and the pivot linkage 170 may be defined as the distancebetween the center of the holes 264 and 266 of the bearing linkage 160and the distance between the center of the holes 275 and 277 of thepivot linkage 170.

The lever 130 may have a first end 131, a second end 132, and a leverbody 133 that extends from the first end 131 to the second end 132. Thefirst end 131 of the lever 130 may be pivotally engaged to the housing110 using pin 146 at a location that is aft of the pin 144 that connectsthe pivot linkage 170 and slide linkage 150 together, or the pin 146 maybe located nearer the second end 112 of the housing than the first end111 of the housing 110. Alternatively, the lever 130 may be pivotallyattached to the housing 110 in other locations, such as pivotallyattaching the lever 130 nearer the first end 111 of the housing 110 thanthe second end 112. The first end 131 of the lever body 133 may beenclosed in the interior cavity 114 within the housing 110 while aportion of the lever body 133 may extend through a lower opening 116 ina lower portion of the housing 110 such that a portion of the lever body133 is exposed outside of the housing 110. Alternatively or optionally,the lever 130 may be pivotally attached to the housing 110 where thelever 130 is located completely outside of the housing 110.

The lever body 133 may include a pocket 135 with a bottom surface 136,such that the roller bearing 143 may contact the bottom surface 136. Asthe lever 130 rotates toward the interior cavity 114, the bottom surface136 may exert a force on the roller bearing 143 causing the second end162 of the bearing linkage 160 and the second end 172 of the pivotlinkage 170 to move towards the slide linkage 150 causing the slidelinkage 150 to move toward from a side opening 115 of the housing 110.As the slide linkage 150 moves toward the side opening 115, the piston12 pushes the hydraulic fluid within the hydraulic brake system 10causing the brakes to engage.

The housing 110 having a first end 111, a second end 112 opposite thefirst end 111, and a housing body 113 extending between the first end111 and the second end 112. The first end 111 may have a side opening115 that extends into an interior cavity 114, and a lower opening 116 ona lower portion of the housing 110 that also extends into the interiorcavity 114. The side opening 115 may have a cylindrical shape thatdefines longitudinal axis 104 of the grip assembly 102. The housing 110may also have a recess 117 formed at the first end 111 that is coaxialwith the longitudinal axis 104. Recess 117 may receive a portion atubular member of the handlebar 22 to connect the grip assembly 102 tothe vehicle 20. The housing 110 may have a pair of opposing flanges 124spaced on either side of an opening 126 that extends into recess 117. Apair of mechanical fasteners 128 may extend through openings in theflanges to secure the grip assembly 102 onto the tubular member of thevehicle 20.

The housing body 113 may include a first member 118 and a second member119 that are releasably joined together. For example, the first member118 and second member 119 may be releasably joined using mechanicalfasteners 121 as in the illustrated example to allow for disassembly andany maintenance or repairs. The first member 118 may have a curved upperoutward facing surface 120 and form the side opening 115 and an upperportion of the interior cavity 114. The second member 119 may have acurved lower outward facing surface and form the lower opening 116 and alower portion of the interior cavity 114. In addition, the lower member119 may be pivotally connected to the lever 130 and also have an openingto receive pin 142 to fix the location of the first end of the pivotlinkage 170. The interior cavity 114 may be formed when the first member118 and the second member 119 are joined together. An edge 127 of thelower opening 116 may contact a portion of the lever body 133 to providea stop to limit rotation of the lever 130 in a direction away from theinterior cavity 114.

In addition, the first member 118 of the housing may have a recess 122along the first member 118 that may be configured to receive a flexibleor polymer coating to enhance the feel of the grip assembly 102. In someexamples, a removable covering may be fitted over the entire gripassembly 102 or over a majority of the grip assembly 102 to enhance thefeel of the grip assembly 102. The removable covering may act as amoisture and dust barrier to keep unwanted moisture and debris from theinterior components of the grip assembly 102.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 11A-11C, the lever 130 may be rotatedtoward the interior cavity 114 of the housing 110 causing the slidelinkage 150 to move linearly toward the opening 115 of the housing 110.In the illustrated examples in FIGS. 11A-11C, the housing 110 is removedto illustrate the linkage assembly 140 movement. In FIG. 11A, the lever130 and linkage assembly 140 are in a normal or rest position. In FIG.11B, the lever 130 has received a force, F, causing the lever 130 torotate upward towards the slide linkage 150. As the lever 130 movesupwards, the roller bearing 143 begins to roll along the bottom surface136 of the pocket 135 and the second end 162 of the bearing linkage 160and the second end of the pivot linkage 170 begin to move upward. Theupward movement of second ends 162, 172 causes the slide linkage 150 tomove horizontally as the first end 171 of the pivot linkage 170 movesrearward within the rear slot 156. Because end 171 of the pivot linkage170 is fixed to the housing 110, the slide linkage 150 moves towards theopening 115 of the housing beginning to push the fluid in the hydraulicline while also compressing spring 148 within the hydraulic line 14. Asshown in FIG. 11C, the rear slot 156 acts as a stop for the slidelinkage 150 as well as a stop for the lever's upward movement, such thata length of the rear slot 156 may determine the length of horizontalmovement of the slide linkage 150. In this fully extended condition, thebrakes of the vehicle may be fully engaged. Additionally, the anglebetween the pivot linkage 170 and the bearing linkage 160 may be greaterin the fully extended condition as compared to the rest condition. Asthe force is removed from the lever 130, the spring 148 that wascompressed when the brakes were engaged, exerts a force to return thelinkage assembly 140 back to its rest condition.

The components for the grip assembly 102 such as the linkage members150, 160, 170 as well as the lever 130 and housing members 118, 119 maybe formed from metallic materials such as but not limited to aluminum,magnesium, steel, or non-metallic materials such as a polymericmaterial, carbon based composites, or other lightweight material. Thecomponents may be formed from known process such as molding, casting,forging, machining, or other methods known to one skilled in the art.

FIGS. 12-14C illustrate an example lever system 200 that is arranged asa grip assembly 202 to activate a cable braking system 10 of a vehicle20. For the example of FIGS. 12-14C, the features are referred to usingsimilar reference numerals under the “2xx” series of reference numerals,rather than “1xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-11C. Accordingly,certain features of the grip assembly 202 that were already describedabove with respect to grip assembly 102 of FIGS. 1-11C may be describedin lesser detail, or may not be described at all. Grip assembly 202 maybe connected to a brake system 10 that is arranged as a cable orientedbrake system 10 with a cable 32 routed inside the handlebar 22 such thatthe cable 32 is not externally visible at the intersection of the gripassembly 202. The grip assembly 202 may include a housing 210, a lever230, and a linkage assembly 240, where the lever 230 may be at leastpartially located within an interior cavity 214 of the housing 210. Thelinkage assembly 240 may include three primary linkage members such as aslide linkage 250, a bearing linkage 260, and a pivot linkage 270, wherethe linkage members are pivotally engaged with each other. For example,the slide linkage 250 may be pivotally engaged with the bearing linkage260 and the pivot linkage 270, while the bearing linkage 260 and thepivot linkage 270 may be pivotally engaged with each other. The lever230 may also be pivotally attached to the housing 210 such that when auser applies a force to the lever 230, the lever 230 rotates toward theinterior cavity 214 of the housing 210. As the lever 230 rotates towardthe interior cavity 214, a portion of the bearing linkage 260 and aportion of the pivot linkage 270 both move toward the slide linkage 250causing the slide linkage 250 to move along a longitudinal axis 204 ofthe grip assembly 202.

As shown in FIG. 13 , the linkage assembly 240 may include three primarylinkage members. In this example, the slide linkage 250 may have a firstend 251, a second end 252, and a slide linkage body 253 extendingbetween the first end 251 and the second end 252. Similarly, the bearinglinkage 260 may have a first end 261, a second end 262 opposite thefirst end 261, and bearing linkage body 263 extending between the firstend 261 and the second end 262, and the pivot linkage 270 may have afirst end 271, a second end 272 opposite the first end 271, and pivotlinkage body 273 extending between the first end 271 and the second end272. In some examples, the first end 251 of the slide linkage 250 mayhave a receiver 259 that is configured to receive an engaging member 34of the cable 32 of the cable braking system 10. The linkage assembly 240may be arranged such that the first end 261 of the bearing linkage 160is pivotally connected nearer the second end 252 of the slide linkage250 than the first end 251 of the slide linkage 250. The first end 261of the bearing linkage 260 may be received in a rear slot 256. Rear slot256 may extends through an upper and lower surface of the slide linkagebody 253 and may have the form of a clevis. In addition, the first end261 of the bearing linkage may have an opening 264 that receives a pin242 that extends through the opening 264 and through an opening 255 ofthe slide linkage body 253 to pivotally connect the bearing linkage 260to the slide linkage 250. Pin 242 may also connect the slide linkage 250and the bearing linkage 260 to the housing 210. By fixing the pin 242 tothe housing 210, the slide linkage 250 may move relative to the housing210. Further the pivot linkage 270 may be pivotally and slidablyconnected to the slide linkage 250 nearer the first end 251 of the slidelinkage 250 than the second end 252. The pivot linkage body 273 may havea first clevis 274 at the first end 271 that receives a portion of theslide linkage body 253. The pivot linkage body 273 may be connected tothe slide linkage 250 with a pin 241 that extends through an opening 275in the first clevis 274 of the pivot linkage 270 through a forward slot254. Forward slot 254 may extend through the front and rear surfaces ofthe slide linkage body 253. The second end 262 of the bearing linkagebody may have a clevis 265 that receives a roller bearing 243, and thesecond end 272 of the pivot linkage 270 may have a second clevis 276that receives the second end 262 of the bearing linkage 260. Pin 244 mayextend through opening 266 in clevis 265, opening 277 in second clevis276, and through the roller bearing 243 to connect the bearing linkage260, the pivot linkage 270, and the roller bearing 243 together. Inaddition, a second roller bearing 245 may be mounted within the rearslot 256 of the slide linkage 250. The second roller bearing 145 maycontact and roll along an interior surface of the lever 230.

The lever 230 may have a first end 231, a second end 232, and a leverbody 233 that extends from the first end 231 to the second end 232. Thefirst end 231 of the lever 230 may be pivotally engaged with the housing210 at a location that is aft of the pin 242 that connects the bearinglinkage 260 and slide linkage 250 together. The first end 231 of thelever body 233 may be enclosed in the interior cavity 214 within thehousing 210 while a portion of the lever body 233 may extend through alower opening 216 in a lower portion of the housing 210. The lever body233 may include a pocket 235 with a bottom surface 236, such that theroller bearing 243 may contact the bottom surface 236. As the lever 230rotates toward the interior cavity 214, the bottom surface 236 may exerta force on the roller bearing 243 causing the second end 262 of thebearing linkage 260 and the second end 272 of the pivot linkage 270 tomove towards the slide linkage 250 causing the slide linkage 250 to moveaway from a side opening 215 of the housing 210. As the slide linkage250 moves away the side opening 215 pulling the cable 32 causing thebraking system 10 to engage a wheel 25 on the vehicle 20.

The housing 210 having a first end 211, a second end 212 opposite thefirst end 211, and a housing body 213 extending between the first end211 and the second end 212. The first end 211 may have a side opening215 that extends into an interior cavity 214, and a lower opening 216 ona lower portion of the housing 210 that also extends into the interiorcavity 214. The side opening 215 may have a cylindrical shape thatdefines longitudinal axis 204 of the grip assembly 202. The housing 210may also have a recess 217 formed at the first end 211 that is coaxialwith the longitudinal axis 204. Recess 217 may receive a portion atubular member of the handlebar 22 to connect the grip assembly 202 tothe brake system 10 of the vehicle 20. The housing body 213 may includea first member 218 and a second member 219 that are releasably joinedtogether. The first member 218 may have a curved upper outward facingsurface and form the side opening 215 and an upper portion of theinterior cavity 214. The second member 219 may have a curved loweroutward facing surface and form the lower opening 216 and a lowerportion of the interior cavity 214. The interior cavity 214 may beformed when the first member 218 and the second member 219 are joinedtogether. An edge 227 of the lower opening 216 may contact a portion ofthe lever body 233 to provide a stop to limit rotation of the lever 230in a direction away from the interior cavity 214.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 14A-14C, the lever 230 may be rotatedtoward the interior cavity 214 of the housing 210 causing the slidelinkage 250 to move linearly away the opening 215 of the housing 210. Inthe illustrated examples in FIGS. 14A-14C, the housing 210 is removed toillustrate the linkage assembly 240 movement. In FIG. 14A, the lever 230and linkage assembly 240 are in a normal or rest position. In FIG. 14B,the lever 230 has received a force, F, causing the lever 230 to rotateupward towards the slide linkage 250. As the lever 230 moves upwards,the roller bearing 243 begins to roll along the bottom surface 236 ofthe pocket 235 and the second end 262 of the bearing linkage 260 and thesecond end 272 of the pivot linkage 270 begin to move upward. The upwardmovement of second ends 262, 272 causes the slide linkage 250 to movehorizontally away from the side opening 215 pulling the cable 32 intothe housing 210. As the slide linkage 250 moves, the forward slot 254moves relative to first end 271 of the pivot linkage 270. As shown inFIG. 11C, the forward slot 254 acts as a stop for the slide linkage 250as well as a stop for the lever's upward movement, such that a length ofthe forward slot 254 may determine the length of horizontal movement ofthe slide linkage 250. In this fully extended condition, the brakes ofthe vehicle may be fully engaged. Additionally, the angle between thepivot linkage 270 and the bearing linkage 260 may be greater in thefully extended condition as compared to the rest condition.

FIGS. 15-20 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 302 with a leversystem 300 arranged to activate a cable braking system 10 of a vehicle20. For the example of FIGS. 15-19 , the features are referred to usingsimilar reference numerals under the “3xx” series of reference numerals,rather than “1xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-11C and referencenumerals “2xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 12-14C. Accordingly,certain features of the grip assembly 302 that were already describedabove with respect to grip assembly 102 of FIGS. 1-11C and grip assembly202 of FIGS. 12-14C may be described in lesser detail, or may not bedescribed at all. Grip assembly 302 may be connected to a brake system10 that is arranged as a cable oriented brake system 10 with a cable 32routed inside the handlebar 22 such that the cable 32 may not beexternally visible at the intersection of the grip assembly 302. Thegrip assembly 302 may have a top side 304, a bottom side 306 oppositethe top side 304, an outboard end 308, and an inboard end 309 oppositethe outboard end 308. The grip assembly 302 may include a housing 310, alever 330, and a linkage assembly 340, where the lever 330 may be atleast partially located within an interior cavity 314 of the housing 310and extend below a bottom edge of the housing 310. The linkage assembly340 may include a pair of linkage members such as a bearing linkage 360and a pivot linkage 370, where the bearing linkage 360 may be pivotallyengaged at a pivot connection 346 with the pivot linkage 370. The lever330 may be pivotally attached to the housing 310 at a lever pivot 334that is spaced a predetermined distance from a first end 331 of thelever 330. The lever 330 may have a contact region 335 arranged on aninterior surface of the lever body 333 between the lever pivot 334 andthe first end 331, where the contact region 335 may contact a stop 390to prevent rotational movement of the lever 330 toward the housing 310when an upward force is applied to the inboard region 337 of the lever330. The contact region 335 may comprise a boss 339 or raised surface onan interior surface of the lever body 333. In some examples, the contactregion 335 may be reinforced with a coating or other surface treatmentto improve its durability. The stop 390 may positioned on the inboardend 311 of the housing 310 and in some examples may be integrally formedwith the housing 310. Optionally, a clamp 395 may be attached to theinboard end 311 of the housing 310 and extend around a majority of theinboard end 311 of the housing 310 to help secure housing 310 to thehandlebar 22 of the vehicle 20. In some examples, the clamp 395 may beintegrally formed with the housing 310. The clamp 395 may include thestop 390 that contacts the contact region 335 to prevent rotationalmovement of the lever 330 when a force is applied to an inboard region337 of the lever 330, where the inboard region 337 may be the regionbetween the lever pivot 334 and the inboard end 311. The clamp 395 maybe secured to the housing 310 using a clamp fastener 396. The leverpivot 334 location may allow for a user to keep their hand on the brakelever 330 at all times to help improve the safety for a user, where anindex finger and middle finger of the user may be located inboard of thelever pivot 334 on the inboard region 337 and a ring finger and pinkyfinger of a user may be located outward of the lever pivot 334 on theoutboard region 338. Thus, when a user applies a force to the inboardregion 337 of the brake lever 330 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever330 with an index and middle finger inboard of the lever pivot 334between the first end 331 and the lever pivot 334), the interactionbetween the contact region 335 and the stop 390 prevents rotationalmovement of the lever 330 toward the inboard end 311 to prevent anyaccidental braking. To apply a braking force, a user may apply a forceto the outboard region 338 of the lever 330 outboard of the lever pivot334 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 330 outboard of the leverpivot 334 between the second end 332 and the lever pivot 334), the lever330 may rotate toward the interior cavity 314 of the housing 310. As thelever 330 rotates toward the interior cavity 314, an interior bearingsurface 336 of the lever 330 may push against the pivot connection 346causing the pivot connection 346 to move upward toward an upper interiorsurface 317 of the housing 310 causing a first end 361 of the bearinglinkage 360 to move toward an outboard end 312 of the housing 310 whichpulls the cable 32 in an outboard direction to engage the brakes of thevehicle 20. In some examples, the interior bearing surface 336 of thelever 330 may have a convex or angled shape that causes the pivotconnection 346 to move upward and outward when the lever 330 rotatestoward the interior cavity 314. Alternatively, the lever 330 may bearranged such that the outboard region 338 includes the contact region335 to prevent rotation toward the housing 310 when an upward force isapplied to the outboard region 338 and the lever 330 is able to rotatetoward the housing 310 when a force is applied to the inboard region 337to cause the braking system to engage with a wheel 25 of a vehicle.

As shown in FIG. 18-20 , the linkage assembly 340 may include a pair oflinkage members. In this example, the bearing linkage 360 may have afirst end 361, a second end 362 opposite the first end 361, and bearinglinkage body 363 extending between the first end 361 and the second end362, and the pivot linkage 370 may have a first end 371, a second end372 opposite the first end 371, and pivot linkage body 373 extendingbetween the first end 371 and the second end 372. The pivot connection346 may connect the second end 362 of the bearing linkage 360 and thesecond end 372 of the pivot linkage. The first end 371 of the pivotlinkage 370 at a linkage connection 379 location may be pivotallyconnected to the housing 310 (or a fixed insert installed into thehousing 310). The linkage connection 379 may be located inboard of thelever pivot 334. In some examples, the pivot connection 346 may includea roller bearing to allow the pivot connection 346 to roll and movesmoothly along the interior bearing surface 336 of the lever 330. Insome examples, the first end 361 of the bearing linkage 360 may beconfigured to connect directly to the cable 32 via a cable anchor 392attached to the bearing linkage 360, or the cable 32 may be indirectlyconnected to the bearing linkage 360 such that movement of the first end361 also moves the cable 32. The first end 361 of the bearing linkage360 may also include a roller bearing connected such that the rollerbearing may contact and roll along an upper interior surface 317 of thehousing 310. In addition, the linkage connection 379 and pivotconnection 346 may include a pinned connection that may include a clevisand/or a receiver to allow the linkages 360, 370 to freely rotaterelative.

The housing 310 having a first or inboard end 311, a second or outboardend 312 opposite the inboard end 311, and a housing body 313 extendingbetween the inboard end 311 and the outboard end 312. The inboard end311 may have a side opening 315 that extends into an interior cavity314, and a lower opening 316 on the housing 310 that also extends intothe interior cavity 314. The side opening 315 may have a cylindricalshape that defines longitudinal axis 303 of the grip assembly 302. Theside opening 315 of housing 310 may receive a portion a tubular memberof the handlebar 22 to connect the grip assembly 302 to the brake system10 of the vehicle 20. The outboard end 312 of the housing 310 mayinclude an access opening 319 to allow access to the interior cavity 314of the housing 310. The housing body 313 may be formed as a unitarymember or may be formed from a plurality of members that may bereleasably or permanently joined together. The housing 310 may have acurved upper outward facing surface opposite the lower opening 316. Inaddition, the housing 310 may have a curved side surfaces extendingdownward from the upper outward facing surface toward the lower opening316.

The lever 330 may have a first end 331, a second end 332, and a leverbody 333 that extends from the first end 331 to the second end 332. Thelever body 333 may include a bottom wall with an outward facing surfacethat extends from a first end 331 of the lever 330 to the second end 332of the lever 330, a pair of lever side walls extending upward from thebottom wall, and an end wall that extends between the bottom wall andthe lever side walls at the second end 332. As discussed above, thelever 330 may be pivotally engaged with the housing 310 at lever pivot334. Lever pivot 334 may be located inboard of the pivot connection 346of the bearing linkage 360 and the pivot linkage 370. As discussedabove, the lever 330 may be pivotally attached to the housing 310 at alever pivot 334 that is spaced a predetermined distance from an inboardend 311 of the lever 330. The predetermined distance may beapproximately 50 percent of an overall length of the lever 330, wherethe overall length of the lever 330 is the distance from a first end 331to the second end 332. In some examples, the predetermined distance maybe within a range of 25 percent and 50 percent of the overall length ofthe lever 330, or within a range of 35 percent and 45 percent of theoverall length of the lever 330. Optionally, the predetermined distancemay be within a range of 10 percent and 90 percent of the overall lengthof the lever 330, or within a range of 25 percent and 75 percent of theoverall length of the lever 330. In addition, the inboard end 331 of thelever 330 may be spaced further inboard (i.e., towards the handlebar)than an inboard end 311 of the housing 310. Further, the lever pivot 334may be located less than 50 percent of a length of the housing definedas the distance from an inboard end 311 of the housing 310 to anoutboard end 312 of the housing 310. A portion of the lever body 333 maybe enclosed in the interior cavity 314 of the housing 310 while aportion of the lever body 333 may extend through a lower opening in thehousing 310. As discussed above, the interior bearing surface 336 mayhave a contoured shape that may have a curved convex shape or an angledshape (relative to a longitudinal axis 303 of the housing 310) thatcontacts and pushes against the pivot connection 346 causing the pivotconnection 346 to move upward and/or outward when the lever 330 rotatestoward the interior cavity 314. The interior bearing surface 336 may beintegrally formed with the lever 330. In some examples, the interiorbearing surface 336 may be a separate component such as a pin connectedto the lever 330 where the pin contacts the roller bearing at pivotconnection 346. As the pivot connection 346 moves upward toward (orupward and outward) the upper interior surface 317, the first end 361 ofthe bearing linkage 360 may move away from a side opening 315 of thehousing 310 pulling the cable 32 of the braking system 10, which causesthe brakes to engage a wheel 25 on the vehicle 20. In addition, when theoutboard region 338 of the lever 330 moves toward the housing 310, theinboard region 337 may move away from the housing 310.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 18-19 , a force, F, applied to the lever330 between the second end 332 and the lever pivot 334 may cause thelever 330 to rotate toward the interior cavity 314 of the housing 310.As the lever 330 rotates, the first end 361 of the bearing linkage 360may move linearly away from the side opening 315 of the housing 310toward an outboard end 312 of the housing 310. In FIG. 17 , the lever330 and linkage assembly 340 are in a normal or rest position. In FIG.18 , the lever 330 has received a force, F, causing the lever 330 torotate upward toward an interior cavity 314 of the housing 310 to anengaged position. As the lever 330 moves upwards, the pivot connection346 begins to move along the interior bearing surface 336 of the lever330 (i.e., the second end 362 of the bearing linkage 360 and the secondend 372 of the pivot linkage 370 begin to move upward or upward andoutboard). The movement of pivot connection 346 causes the first end 361of the bearing linkage 360 to move linearly away from the side opening315 pulling the cable 32 into the housing 310. As the first end 361 ofthe bearing linkage 360 pulls the cable 32 into the housing 310, thebrakes may engage with a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20. Once the force, F,is removed the tension from the cable 32 pulls the linkage assembly 340back to the normal or rest position as shown in FIG. 18 .

FIGS. 21-25 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 402 with a leversystem 400 arranged to activate a cable braking system 10 of a vehicle20. For the example of FIGS. 21-25 , the features are referred to usingsimilar reference numerals under the “4xx” series of reference numerals,rather than “1xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-11C, referencenumerals “2xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 12-14C, and referencenumerals under “3xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 15-20 .Accordingly, certain features of the grip assembly 402 that were alreadydescribed above with respect to grip assemblies 102, 202, and 302 may bedescribed in lesser detail, or may not be described at all. Gripassembly 402 may be connected to a brake system 10 that is arranged as acable oriented brake system 10 with a cable 32 routed inside or outsidethe handlebar 22. The grip assembly 402 may include a housing 410, alever 430, and a bearing linkage 460, where the lever 430 may be atleast partially located within an interior cavity 414 of the housing410. The bearing linkage 460 may be pivotally engaged at a linkage pivot447 with the lever 430. As in other examples, the lever 430 may bepivotally attached to the housing 410 at a lever pivot 434 that isspaced a predetermined distance from a first end 431 of the lever 430.The lever 430 may have a contact region 435 between the lever pivot 434and the first end 431, where the contact region 435 may contact a stop490 to prevent rotational movement toward an inboard end 411 of thehousing 410. The stop 490 may positioned on the housing 410 and in someexamples may be integrally formed with the housing 410. Optionally, aclamp 495 may be attached to the housing 410 and extend around amajority of the first end 411 of the housing 410 to help secure housing410 to the handlebar 22 of the vehicle 20. The clamp 495 may include thestop 490 that contacts the contact region 435 to prevent rotationalmovement of the lever 430 when a force is applied to the inboard region437. The lever pivot 434 location may allow for a user to keep theirhand on the brake lever 430 at all times to help improve the safety fora user, where an index finger and middle finger of a user may be locatedinboard of the lever pivot 434 on the inboard region 437 and a ringfinger and pinky finger of a user may be located outward of the leverpivot 434 on the outboard region 438. Thus, when a user applies a forceto the inboard region 437 of the brake lever 430 (e.g., when a usersqueezes the lever 430 with an index and middle finger inboard of thelever pivot 434 between the first end 431 and the lever pivot 434), theinteraction between the contact region 435 and the stop 490 preventsrotational movement of the lever 430 to prevent any accidental braking.To apply a braking force, a user may apply a force, F, to the outboardregion 438 of the lever 430 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 430outboard of the lever pivot 434 between the second end 432 and the leverpivot 434), the lever 430 may rotate toward the interior cavity 414 ofthe housing 410. As the outboard region 438 of the lever 430 rotatestoward the interior cavity 414, the first end 461 of the bearing linkage460 moves away from the first end 411 of the housing 410 causing a brakesystem 10 of the vehicle 20 to engage a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20. Whenengaging the brakes, the first end 461 of the bearing linkage 460 maymove toward an outboard end 412 of the housing 410 which pulls the cable32 in an outboard direction.

As shown in FIGS. 21-25 , the bearing linkage 460 may have a first end461, a second end 462 opposite the first end 461, and bearing linkagebody 463 extending between the first end 461 and the second end 462,where the first end 461 may include a roller bearing where the rollerbearing may contact and roll along an interior surface 417 of thehousing 410 and the second end 462 may be pivotally connected to thelever 430 at the linkage pivot 447. The linkage pivot 447 may be apinned connection where the bearing linkage 460 may engage the lever430. In some examples, the first end 461 of the bearing linkage 460 maybe configured to connect directly to the cable 32 via a cable anchor492, or the cable 32 may be indirectly connected to the bearing linkage460 such that movement of the first end 461 also moves the cable 32. Theinterior surface 417 of the housing 410 may face the lower opening 416of the housing 410 and be angled relative to an upper edge of thehousing 410 (i.e., a plane parallel to the uppermost longitudinal edgeof a top surface of the housing 410), where a distance from an outboardend 418 of the interior surface 417 may be closer to the upper edge ofthe housing than an inboard end of the interior surface 417. Inaddition, the pivotal connection between the bearing linkage 460 and thecable anchor 492 may include a pinned connection that may include aclevis and/or a receiver to allow the bearing linkage 460 and the cableanchor 492 to rotate relative to each other. As another option, a disc498 may be arranged on either or both sides of the cable anchor 492 toallow the first end 461 of the bearing linkage 460 to roll alonginterior surface 417 as shown in FIG. 22 .

The housing 410 having a first or inboard end 411, a second or outboardend 412 opposite the inboard end 411, and a housing body 413 extendingbetween the inboard end 411 and the outboard end 412. The inboard end411 may have a side opening 415 that extends into an interior cavity414, and a lower opening 416 on the housing 410 that also extends intothe interior cavity 414. The outboard end 412 of the housing 410 mayinclude an access opening 419 to allow access to the interior cavity 414of the housing 410. As discussed in more detail below, the housing 410may also include an aperture 493 to route cable 32 through the housing410 and a cable casing receiver 494 to receive the cable casing 36.

The lever 430 may have a first end 431, a second end 432, and a leverbody 433 that extends from the first end 431 to the second end 432. Asdiscussed above, the lever 430 may be pivotally engaged with the housing410 at lever pivot 434. Lever pivot 434 may be located inboard of thelinkage pivot 447 that connects the bearing linkage 460 and the lever430. The lever 430 may be pivotally attached to the housing 410 at alever pivot 434 that is spaced a predetermined distance from a first end431 of the lever 430. The predetermined distance may be approximately 50percent of an overall length of the lever 430, where the overall lengthof the lever 430 is the distance from a first end 431 to the second end432. In some examples, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 25 percent and 50 percent of the overall length of the lever 430, orwithin a range of 35 percent and 45 percent of the overall length of thelever 430. Optionally, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 10 percent and 90 percent of the overall length of the lever 430, orwithin a range of 25 percent and 75 percent of the overall length of thelever 430. A portion of the lever body 433 may be enclosed in theinterior cavity 414 of the housing 410 while a portion of the lever body433 may extend through a lower opening 416 in the housing 410. As thefirst end 461 of the bearing linkage 460 moves upward and outward alongthe interior surface 417, the first end 461 of the bearing linkage 460may pull the cable 32 of the braking system 10, which causes the brakesto engage a wheel 25 on the vehicle 20.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 21 and 25 , a force, F, applied to thelever 430 between the second end 432 and the lever pivot 434 may causethe lever 430 to rotate toward the interior cavity 414 of the housing410. As the lever 430 rotates, the first end 461 of the bearing linkage460 may move linearly upward and outward away from the side opening 415of the housing 410 toward an outboard end 412 of the housing 410. InFIG. 21 , the lever 430 and bearing linkage 460 are in a normal or restposition. In FIG. 25 , the lever 430 has received a force, F, causingthe lever 430 to rotate upward toward an interior cavity 414 of thehousing 410 to an engaged position. As the lever 430 moves upwards, thefirst end 461 of the bearing linkage 460 may move upward and outboardpulling the cable 32 into the housing 410. As the first end 461 of thebearing linkage 460 pulls the cable 32 into the housing 410, the brakesmay engage with a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20. Once the force, F, isremoved the tension from the cable 32 pulls the bearing linkage 460 backto the normal or rest position.

FIGS. 26-30 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 502 with a leversystem 500 arranged to activate a cable braking system 10 of a vehicle20. For the example of FIGS. 26-30 , the features are referred to usingsimilar reference numerals under the “5xx” series of reference numerals,rather than “1xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-11C, referencenumerals “2xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 12-14C, referencenumerals under “3xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 16-20 , andreference numerals under “4xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 21-25. Accordingly, certain features of the grip assembly 502 that werealready described above with respect to grip assemblies 102, 202, 302,and 402 may be described in lesser detail, or may not be described atall. Grip assembly 502 may be connected to a brake system 10 that isarranged as a cable oriented brake system 10 with a cable 32 routedinside or outside the handlebar 22. The grip assembly 502 may include ahousing 510, a lever 530, a bearing linkage 560 and a swing linkage 580,where the lever 530 may be at least partially located within an interiorcavity 514 of the housing 510. The bearing linkage 560 may be pivotallyconnected at a first linkage pivot 547 with the lever 530 and alsopivotally connected with the swing linkage 580 at a second linkage pivot548. The swing linkage 580 may also be pivotally connected the housing510. As in other examples, the lever 530 may be pivotally attached tothe housing 510 at a lever pivot 534 that is spaced a predetermineddistance from an inboard end 531 of the lever 530. The lever 530 mayhave a contact region 535 between the lever pivot 534 and the first end531, where the contact region 535 may contact a stop 590 to preventrotational movement toward the inboard end 511 of the housing 510. Thestop 590 may positioned on the housing 510 and in some examples may beintegrally formed with the housing 510. Optionally, a clamp 595 may beattached to the housing 510 and extend around a majority of the firstend 511 of the housing 510 to help secure housing 510 to the handlebar22 of the vehicle 20. The clamp 595 may include the stop 590 thatcontacts the contact region 535 to prevent rotational movement of thelever 530 when a force is applied to the inboard region 537. The leverpivot 534 location may allow for a user to keep their hand on the brakelever 530 at all times to help improve the safety for a user, where anindex finger and middle finger of a user may be located inboard of thelever pivot 534 on the inboard region 537 and a ring finger and pinkyfinger of a user may be located outward of the lever pivot 534 on theoutboard region 538. Thus, when a user applies a force to the inboardregion 537 of the brake lever 530 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever530 with an index and middle finger inboard of the lever pivot 534between the first end 531 and the lever pivot 534), the interactionbetween the contact region 535 and the stop 590 prevents rotationalmovement of the lever 530 to prevent any accidental braking. To apply abraking force, a user may apply a force, F, to the outboard region 538of the lever 530 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 530 outboard ofthe lever pivot 534 between the second end 532 and the lever pivot 534),the lever 530 may rotate toward the interior cavity 514 of the housing510. As the outboard region 538 of the lever 530 rotates toward theinterior cavity 514, the second end 562 of the bearing linkage 560 maymove away from the first end 511 of the housing 510 causing a brakesystem 10 of the vehicle 20 to engage a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20. Whenengaging the brakes, the second end 562 of the bearing linkage 560 maymove toward an outboard end 512 of the housing 510 which pulls the cable32 in an outboard direction.

As shown in FIGS. 26-30 , the linkage assembly 540 may include a bearinglinkage 560 and a swing linkage 580. The bearing linkage 560 may have afirst end 561, a second end 562 opposite the first end 561, and bearinglinkage body 563 extending between the first end 561 and the second end562. Similarly, the swing linkage 580 may include a first end 581, asecond end 582, and a swing linkage body 583. The first end 561 may bepivotally connected to the lever 530 at a first linkage pivot 547, andthe second end 562 may be pivotally connected to a first end 581 of theswing linkage 580 at a second linkage pivot 548. A second end 582 of theswing linkage 580 may be pivotally connected to an interior surfacewithin the interior cavity 514 of the housing 510. In some examples, thesecond end 562 of the bearing linkage 560 may be configured to connectdirectly to the cable 32 via a cable anchor 592, or the cable 32 may beindirectly connected to the bearing linkage 560 such that movement ofthe second end 562 also moves the cable 32. In addition, the linkagepivots 547, 548, 549 may be a pivotal connection that includes a pinnedconnection that may include a clevis and/or a receiver. For example, asshown in FIG. 27 , linkage pivot 548 includes a clevis and pinnedconnection to allow the bearing linkage 560 and the cable anchor 592 torotate relative to each other.

The housing 510 having a first or inboard end 511, a second or outboardend 512 opposite the inboard end 511, and a housing body 513 extendingbetween the inboard end 511 and the outboard end 512. The inboard end511 may have a side opening 515 that extends into an interior cavity514, and a lower opening 516 on the housing 510 that also extends intothe interior cavity 514. The outboard end 512 of the housing 510 mayinclude an access opening 519 to allow access to the interior cavity 514of the housing 510. As discussed in more detail below, the housing 510may also include an aperture 593 to route cable 32 through the housing510 and a cable casing receiver 594 to receive the cable casing 36.

The lever 530 may have a first end 531, a second end 532, and a leverbody 533 that extends from the first end 531 to the second end 532. Asdiscussed above, the lever 530 may be pivotally engaged with the housing510 at lever pivot 534. Lever pivot 534 may be located inboard of thefirst linkage pivot 547 that connects the bearing linkage 560 and thelever 530 and also inboard of the second and third linkage pivots 548,549. The lever 530 may be pivotally attached to the housing 510 at alever pivot 534 that is spaced a predetermined distance from a first end531 of the lever 530. The predetermined distance may be approximately 50percent of an overall length of the lever 530, where the overall lengthof the lever 530 is the distance from a first end 531 to the second end532. In some examples, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 25 percent and 50 percent of the overall length of the lever 530, orwithin a range of 35 percent and 45 percent of the overall length of thelever 530. Optionally, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 10 percent and 90 percent of the overall length of the lever 530, orwithin a range of 25 percent and 75 percent of the overall length of thelever 530. A portion of the lever body 533 may be enclosed in theinterior cavity 514 of the housing 510 while a portion of the lever body533 may extend through a lower opening 516 in the housing 510.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 26 and 30 , a force, F, applied to thelever 530 between the second end 532 and the lever pivot 534 may causethe lever 530 to rotate toward the interior cavity 514 of the housing510. As the lever 530 rotates, the second end 562 of the bearing linkage560 may move upward and outboard away from the side opening 515 of thehousing 510 and toward an outboard end 512 of the housing 510. In FIG.26 , the lever 530 and bearing linkage 560 are in a normal or restposition. In FIG. 30 , the lever 530 has received a force, F, causingthe lever 530 to rotate upward toward an interior cavity 514 of thehousing 510 to an engaged position. As the lever 530 moves upwards, thesecond end 562 of the bearing linkage 560 may move outboard or upwardand outboard pulling the cable 32 into the housing 510. As the secondend 562 of the bearing linkage 560 pulls the cable 32 into the housing510, the brakes may engage with a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20. Once theforce, F, is removed the tension from the cable 32 pulls the bearinglinkage 560 back to the normal or rest position.

The grip assemblies 402, 502 may also include options to route the cable32 of the brake system 10 either through the handlebars 22 of thevehicle or outside of the handlebars 22 as shown in FIGS. 31-34 . WhileFIGS. 31-34 are illustrated using grip assembly 502, this same cablerouting also applies to grip assembly 402. This flexibility of routingthe cable 32 either inside or outside the handlebars allows for existingvehicles 20 to be modified with the grip assemblies 402, 502. FIGS.31-32 illustrate an option to route the brake cable 32 through thehousing 510 and into the handlebars 22 of the vehicle 20 in both a restposition in FIG. 31 and an engaged position in FIG. 32 . The housing 510may include an aperture 593 that extends through the interior cavity 514and allows access to side opening 515. The aperture 593 may provide apath for the cable 32 to extend from the cable anchor 592 through theaperture 593 and into the handlebar 22 and then to other brakecomponents of the brake system 10. The cable 32 may be sheathed in acable casing 36 that may be routed through the handlebar 22 and theopening 515. The cable casing 36 is then received in a receiver 594 ofthe housing 510. The receiver 594 may be contiguous with aperture 593such that the cable 32 can extend through both the aperture 593 and thereceiver 594. The receiver 594 may have a larger diameter than theaperture 593 to receive the casing 36. The casing 36 may be secured intothe receiver 594 using a friction fit. In addition, the receiver 594 mayinclude a tapered region 597 at one end to help the installation of thecasing 36 into the receiver 594. The tapered region 597 may form anasymmetric conical shape to help guide the casing 36 into the receiver594 from different directions. The access opening 519 allows access tothe grip assembly 502 to allow a user to feed the cable 32 through theoutboard end 512 of the housing 510.

FIGS. 33-34 illustrate an option to route the brake cable 32 outside ofthe housing 510 and outside the handlebars 22 of the vehicle 20 in botha rest position in FIG. 33 and an engaged position in FIG. 34 . In FIGS.33-34 , the cable 32 may be connected to the cable anchor 592 and routedthrough the lower opening 516 of the housing 510. The cable 32 may alsoextend through an opening through a pin that connects lever 530 and thehousing 510 at the lever pivot 534. In addition, the cable 32 may extendthrough an aperture in the clamp 595. In addition, the clamp 595 mayhave a receiver 598 that receives the cable casing 36. The cable casing36 may be secured via a friction fit with the receiver 598. The cable 32may extend from the cable anchor 592 through the lower opening 516 andoutside the handlebar 22 and then to other brake components of the brakesystem 10.

While the exemplary grip assemblies 302, 402, 502 as illustrated areconfigured for a cable-type brake system, the grip assemblies 302, 402,502 may be configured to work with a hydraulic brake system similar tothat described in grip assembly 102 as described in more detail below.In a hydraulic brake system, the bearing linkage may be arranged to havean end move inboard when the outboard region of the lever is squeezed tomove hydraulic fluid within a hydraulic brake system. In some examplesof grip assemblies for hydraulic braking systems described herein, thedistance an end of a linkage may be required to travel may be up tofifty percent less to engage a hydraulic braking system as compared to acable driven braking system.

FIGS. 35-39 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 602 with a leversystem 600 arranged to activate a hydraulic braking system 10 of avehicle 20. Braking system 10 in the example illustrated in FIGS. 35-39may be a hydraulic braking system with a hydraulic line routed insidethe handlebar such that the hydraulic line may not be externally visibleat the intersection of the grip assembly 602. For the example of FIGS.35-39 , the features are referred to using similar reference numeralsunder the “6xx” series of reference numerals, rather than “1xx” as usedin the embodiment of FIGS. 1-11C, reference numerals “2xx” as used inthe embodiment of FIGS. 12-14C, reference numerals under “3xx” as usedin the embodiment of FIGS. 16-20 , reference numerals under “4xx” asused in the embodiment of FIGS. 21-25 , and reference numerals under“5xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 26-34 . Accordingly, certainfeatures of the grip assembly 602 that were already described above withrespect to grip assemblies 102, 202, 302, 402, and 502 may be describedin lesser detail, or may not be described at all. Grip assembly 602 maybe connected to a brake system 10 that is arranged as a hydraulic brakesystem 10 with a hydraulic line 14 of the hydraulic braking system 10routed inside the handlebar of the vehicle. The grip assembly 602 mayinclude a housing 610, a lever 630 and a bearing linkage 660, where thelever 630 may be at least partially located within an interior cavity614 of the housing 610. The bearing linkage 660 may be pivotallyconnected at a first linkage pivot 647 with the lever 630 and alsopivotally connected with a piston 12 at a second linkage pivot 648. Thepiston 12 may be slidably engaged with a hydraulic cylinder 16 to movethe hydraulic fluid within the hydraulic line to engage the brakingsystem of the vehicle. The hydraulic cylinder 16 may be anchored withinan interior cavity 614 of the housing 610. In addition, the hydrauliccylinder 16 may have a first end 24 that receives the piston 12, asecond end 26 opposite the first end 24 that has a nipple or otherconnection feature 28 to connect to a hydraulic line of the vehiclebrake system. As in the other examples, the lever 630 may be pivotallyattached to the housing 610 at a lever pivot 634 that is spaced apredetermined distance from an inboard end 631 of the lever 630. Thelever 630 may have a contact region 635 between the lever pivot 634 andthe first end 631, where the contact region 635 may contact a stop 690to prevent rotational movement toward the inboard end 611 of the housing610. The stop 690 may positioned on the housing 610 and in some examplesmay be integrally formed with the housing 610. Optionally, a clamp 695may be attached to the housing 610 and extend around a majority of thefirst end 611 of the housing 610 to help secure housing 610 to thehandlebar of the vehicle. The clamp 695 may include the stop 690 thatcontacts the contact region 635 to prevent rotational movement of thelever 630 when a force is applied to the inboard region 637. The leverpivot 634 location may allow for a user to keep their hand on the brakelever 630 at all times to help improve the safety for a user, where anindex finger and middle finger of a user may be located inboard of thelever pivot 634 on the inboard region 637 and a ring finger and pinkyfinger of a user may be located outward of the lever pivot 634 on theoutboard region 638. Thus, when a user applies a force to the inboardregion 637 of the brake lever 630 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever630 with an index and middle finger inboard of the lever pivot 634between the first end 631 and the lever pivot 634), the interactionbetween the contact region 635 and the stop 690 prevents rotationalmovement of the lever 630 to prevent any accidental braking. To apply abraking force, a user may apply a force, F, to the outboard region 638of the lever 630 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 630 outboard ofthe lever pivot 634 between the second end 632 and the lever pivot 634),the lever 630 may rotate toward the interior cavity 614 of the housing610. As the outboard region 638 of the lever 630 rotates toward theinterior cavity 614, the second end 662 of the bearing linkage 660 movestoward the first end 611 of the housing 610 causing the piston 12 tomove toward the first end 611 of the housing 610 pushing the hydraulicfluid in a brake system 10 of the vehicle resulting in a brake engaginga wheel 25 of the vehicle.

As shown in FIGS. 35-39 , the bearing linkage 660 may have a first end661, a second end 662 opposite the first end 661, and bearing linkagebody 663 extending between the first end 661 and the second end 662. Thefirst end 661 may be pivotally connected to the lever 630 at a firstlinkage pivot 647, and the second end 662 may be pivotally connected tothe piston 12 at a second linkage pivot 648. The second linkage pivot648 may be located near a rear surface 13 of the piston 12. The movementof the second end 662 of the bearing linkage 660 is configured to alsomove the piston 12. In addition, the linkage pivots 647, 648 may be apivotal connection that includes a pinned connection that may include aclevis and/or a receiver. For example, as shown in FIG. 37 , linkagepivot 647 includes a clevis and pinned connection to allow the bearinglinkage 660 to rotate relative to the piston 12.

The housing 610 having a first or inboard end 611, a second or outboardend 612 opposite the inboard end 611, and a housing body 613 extendingbetween the inboard end 611 and the outboard end 612. The inboard end611 may have a side opening 615 that extends into an interior cavity614, and a lower opening 616 on the housing 610 that also extends intothe interior cavity 614. The outboard end 612 of the housing 610 mayinclude an access opening 619 to allow access to a bleeder stem 18 thatextends from the hydraulic cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may extendfrom a rear surface 13 of the piston and may include an internal channel19 extends through the bleeder stem 18 and the piston 12 to be in fluidcommunication with the hydraulic cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 mayinclude a valve near the end of the bleeder stem 18 to allow a user toperform maintenance of the hydraulic system. The bleeder stem 18 may bea rigid tube that is slidably engaged with the access opening 619 andmoves with the piston 12 or in some examples, may be a flexible tubethat has one end fixed to the access opening 619 but is configured toallow for movement of the piston 12 within the cylinder 16.

The lever 630 may have a first end 631, a second end 632, and a leverbody 633 that extends from the first end 631 to the second end 632. Asdiscussed above, the lever 630 may be pivotally engaged with the housing610 at lever pivot 634. Lever pivot 634 may be located inboard of thefirst linkage pivot 647 that connects the bearing linkage 660 and thelever 630 and also inboard of the second linkage pivot 648. The lever630 may be pivotally attached to the housing 610 at a lever pivot 634that is spaced a predetermined distance from a first end 631 of thelever 630. The predetermined distance may be approximately 50 percent ofan overall length of the lever 630, where the overall length of thelever 630 is the distance from a first end 631 to the second end 632. Insome examples, the predetermined distance may be within a range of 25percent and 50 percent of the overall length of the lever 630, or withina range of 35 percent and 45 percent of the overall length of the lever630. Optionally, the predetermined distance may be within a range of 10percent and 90 percent of the overall length of the lever 630, or withina range of 25 percent and 75 percent of the overall length of the lever630. A portion of the lever body 633 may be enclosed in the interiorcavity 614 of the housing 610 while a portion of the lever body 633 mayextend through a lower opening 616 in the housing 610.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 35-36 , a force, F, applied to the lever630 in the outboard region 638 between the second end 632 and the leverpivot 634 may cause the lever 630 to rotate toward the interior cavity614 of the housing 610. As the lever 630 rotates, the second end 662 ofthe bearing linkage 660 may move upward or upward and/inboard toward theside opening 615 of the housing 610 to push the piston 12 within thecylinder 16. In FIG. 35 , the lever 630 and bearing linkage 660 are in anormal or rest position. In FIG. 36 , the lever 630 has received aforce, F, causing the lever 630 to rotate upward toward an interiorcavity 614 of the housing 610 to an engaged position. As the lever 630moves upwards, the second end 662 of the bearing linkage 660 may moveupward or upward and inboard pushing the piston 12 into the cylinder 16to push hydraulic fluid out of the cylinder 16 to engage a brakingsystem with a wheel 25 of the vehicle. Once the force, F, is removed thepressure in the hydraulic line 14 pushes the piston 12 and the bearinglinkage 660 back to the normal or rest position.

FIGS. 40-44 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 702 with a leversystem 700 arranged to activate a hydraulic braking system 10 of avehicle 20. Braking system 10 in the example illustrated in FIGS. 40-44may be a hydraulic braking system with a hydraulic line 14 routedoutside the handlebar such that the hydraulic line is externally visibleat the intersection of the grip assembly 702. For the example of FIGS.40-44 , the features are referred to using similar reference numeralsunder the “7xx” series of reference numerals, rather than “1xx” as usedin the embodiment of FIGS. 1-11C, reference numerals “2xx” as used inthe embodiment of FIGS. 12-14C, reference numerals under “3xx” as usedin the embodiment of FIGS. 16-20 , reference numerals under “4xx” asused in the embodiment of FIGS. 21-25 , reference numerals under “5xx”as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 26-34 , and reference numerals under“6xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 35-39 . Accordingly, certainfeatures of the grip assembly 702 that were already described above withrespect to grip assemblies 102, 202, 302, 402, 502, and 602 may bedescribed in lesser detail, or may not be described at all. Gripassembly 702 may be connected to a brake system 10 that is arranged as ahydraulic brake system 10 with a hydraulic line 14 of the hydraulicbraking system 10 routed outside the handlebar of the vehicle. The gripassembly 702 may include a housing 710, a lever 730 and a bearinglinkage 760, where the lever 730 may be at least partially locatedwithin an interior cavity 714 of the housing 710. The bearing linkage760 may be pivotally connected at a first linkage pivot 747 with thehousing 710 at a first end 761 and also pivotally connected with apiston 12 at a second linkage pivot 748 at a second end 762. The piston12 may be slidably engaged with a hydraulic cylinder 16 to move thehydraulic fluid within the hydraulic line to engage the braking system10 of the vehicle. The hydraulic cylinder 16 may be anchored to thelever 730. In addition, the hydraulic cylinder 16 may have a first end24 that receives the piston 12, a second end 26 opposite the first end24 that has a nipple or other connection feature 28 to connect to ahydraulic line 14 of the vehicle brake system 10. As in the otherexamples, the lever 730 may be pivotally attached to the housing 710 ata lever pivot 734 that is spaced a predetermined distance from aninboard end 731 of the lever 730. The lever 730 may have a contactregion 735 between the lever pivot 734 and the first end 731, where thecontact region 735 may contact a stop 790 to prevent rotational movementtoward the inboard end 711 of the housing 710. The stop 790 maypositioned on the housing 710 and in some examples may be integrallyformed with the housing 710. Optionally, a clamp 795 may be attached tothe housing 710 and extend around a majority of the first end 711 of thehousing 710 to help secure housing 710 to the handlebar of the vehicle.The clamp 795 may include the stop 790 that contacts the contact region735 to prevent rotational movement of the lever 730 when a force isapplied to the inboard region 737. The lever pivot 734 location mayallow for a user to keep their hand on the brake lever 730 at all timesto help improve the safety for a user, where an index finger and middlefinger of a user may be located inboard of the lever pivot 734 on theinboard region 737 and a ring finger and pinky finger of a user may belocated outward of the lever pivot 734 on the outboard region 738. Thus,when a user applies a force to the inboard region 737 of the brake lever730 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 730 with an index and middlefinger inboard of the lever pivot 734 between the first end 731 and thelever pivot 734), the interaction between the contact region 735 and thestop 790 prevents rotational movement of the lever 730 to prevent anyaccidental braking. To apply a braking force, a user may apply a force,F, to the outboard region 738 of the lever 730 (e.g., when a usersqueezes the lever 730 outboard of the lever pivot 734 between thesecond end 732 and the lever pivot 734), the lever 730 may rotate towardthe interior cavity 714 of the housing 710. As the outboard region 738of the lever 730 rotates toward the interior cavity 714, the second end762 of the bearing linkage 760 moves toward the first end 731 of thelever 730 causing the piston 12 to move toward the second end 26 of thecylinder 16 pushing the hydraulic fluid in hydraulic line 14 of a brakesystem 10 of the vehicle resulting in a brake engaging a wheel 25 of thevehicle 20.

As shown in FIGS. 40-44 , the bearing linkage 760 may have a first end761, a second end 762 opposite the first end 761, and bearing linkagebody 763 extending between the first end 761 and the second end 762. Thefirst end 761 may be pivotally connected to the housing 710 at a firstlinkage pivot 747, and the second end 762 may be pivotally connected tothe piston 12 at a second linkage pivot 748. The second linkage pivot748 may be located near a rear surface 13 of the piston 12. The movementof the second end 762 of the bearing linkage 760 is configured to alsomove the piston 12. In addition, the linkage pivots 747, 748 may be apivotal connection that includes a pinned connection that may include aclevis and/or a receiver. For example, the second linkage pivot 748includes a clevis and pinned connection to allow the bearing linkage 760to rotate relative to the piston 12.

The housing 710 having a first or inboard end 711, a second or outboardend 712 opposite the inboard end 711, and a housing body 713 extendingbetween the inboard end 711 and the outboard end 712. The inboard end711 may have a side opening 715 that extends into an interior cavity714, and a lower opening 716 on the housing 710 that also extends intothe interior cavity 714.

The lever 730 may have a first end 731, a second end 732, and a leverbody 733 that extends from the first end 731 to the second end 732. Asdiscussed above, the lever 730 may be pivotally engaged with the housing710 at lever pivot 734. Lever pivot 734 may be located inboard of thefirst linkage pivot 747 that connects the bearing linkage 760 and thehousing 710 and also inboard of the second linkage pivot 748. The secondlinkage pivot 748 may be located inboard of the first linkage pivot 747.The lever 730 may be pivotally attached to the housing 710 at a leverpivot 734 that is spaced a predetermined distance from a first end 731of the lever 730. The predetermined distance may be approximately 50percent of an overall length of the lever 730, where the overall lengthof the lever 730 is the distance from a first end 731 to the second end732. In some examples, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 25 percent and 50 percent of the overall length of the lever 730, orwithin a range of 35 percent and 45 percent of the overall length of thelever 730. Optionally, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 10 percent and 90 percent of the overall length of the lever 730, orwithin a range of 25 percent and 75 percent of the overall length of thelever 730. A portion of the lever body 733 may be enclosed in theinterior cavity 714 of the housing 710 while a portion of the lever body733 may extend through a lower opening 716 in the housing 710. Theoutboard end 732 of the lever 730 may include an access opening 739 toallow access to a bleeder stem 18 that extends from the hydrauliccylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may extend from the hydraulic cylinder16 may also include an internal channel 19 that extends through thebleeder stem 18 to be in fluid communication with the hydraulic cylinder16. The bleeder stem 18 may be a rigid tube that is an end that is fixedwith access opening 739, or may be a flexible tube that has one endfixed to the access opening 739 and the other end fixed to the cylinder16.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 40-41 , an upward oriented force, F, (i.e.,a force in a direction toward the interior cavity 714 of the housing710) applied to the lever 730 in the outboard region 738 between thesecond end 732 and the lever pivot 734 may cause the lever 730 to rotatetoward the interior cavity 714 of the housing 710. As the lever 730rotates, the second end 762 of the bearing linkage 760 may move upwardand/or toward an inboard end 731 of the lever 730 to push the piston 12within the cylinder 16. In FIG. 40 , the lever 730 and bearing linkage760 are in a normal or rest position. In FIG. 41 , the lever 730 hasreceived a force, F, causing the lever 730 to rotate upward toward aninterior cavity 714 of the housing 710 to an engaged position. As thelever 730 moves upwards, the second end 762 of the bearing linkage 760may move upward and/or inboard pushing the piston 12 into the cylinder16 to push hydraulic fluid out of the cylinder 16 to engage a brakingsystem with a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20. Once the force, F, is removedthe pressure in the hydraulic line 14 pushes the piston 12 and thebearing linkage 760 back to the normal or rest position.

FIGS. 45-46 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 802 with a leversystem 800 arranged to activate a hydraulic braking system 10 of avehicle. Braking system 10 in the example illustrated in FIGS. 45-46 maybe a hydraulic braking system with a hydraulic line 14 routed outsidethe handlebar such that the hydraulic line is externally visible at theintersection of the grip assembly 802. For the example of FIGS. 45-46 ,the features are referred to using similar reference numerals under the“8xx” series of reference numerals, rather than “1xx” as used in theembodiment of FIGS. 1-11C, reference numerals “2xx” as used in theembodiment of FIGS. 12-14C, reference numerals under “3xx” as used inthe embodiment of FIGS. 16-20 , reference numerals under “4xx” as usedin the embodiment of FIGS. 21-25 , reference numerals under “5xx” asused in the embodiment of FIGS. 26-34 , reference numerals under “6xx”as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 35-39 , reference numerals under“7xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 40-44 . Accordingly, certainfeatures of the grip assembly 802 that were already described above withrespect to grip assemblies 102, 202, 302, 402, 502, 602, and 702 may bedescribed in lesser detail, or may not be described at all. Gripassembly 802 may be connected to a brake system 10 that is arranged as ahydraulic brake system 10 with a hydraulic line 14 of the hydraulicbraking system 10 routed outside the handlebar 22 of the vehicle 20. Thegrip assembly 802 may include a housing 810, a lever 830 and a bearinglinkage 860, where the lever 830 may be at least partially locatedwithin an interior cavity 814 of the housing 810. The bearing linkage860 may be pivotally connected at a first linkage pivot 847 with thelever 830 at a first end 861 and also pivotally connected with a piston12 at a second linkage pivot 848 at a second end 862. The piston 12 maybe slidably engaged with a hydraulic cylinder 16 to move the hydraulicfluid within the hydraulic line 14 to engage the braking system 10 ofthe vehicle. The hydraulic cylinder 16 may be anchored to the housing810. In some examples, the hydraulic cylinder 16 may extend through thelower opening 816 of the housing 810 and extend into the lever 830. Inaddition, the hydraulic cylinder 16 may have a first end 24 thatreceives the piston 12, a second end 26 opposite the first end 24. Ableeder stem 18 may attach to an exterior of the cylinder 16 and extendoutboard to connect to an access opening 819 in the outboard end 812 ofthe housing 810. The bleeder stem 18 may be in fluid communication withthe cylinder and extend toward the inboard end 811 of the housing 810and/or the inboard end 831 of the lever 830. The inboard end of thebleeder stem 18 may comprise a nipple or other connection feature 28 toconnect to a hydraulic line 14 of the vehicle brake system 10.

As in the other examples, the lever 830 may be pivotally attached to thehousing 810 at a lever pivot 834 that is spaced a predetermined distancefrom an inboard end 831 of the lever 830. The lever 830 may have acontact region 835 between the lever pivot 834 and the first end 831,where the contact region 835 may contact a stop 890 to preventrotational movement toward the inboard end 811 of the housing 810. Thestop 890 may positioned on the housing 810 and in some examples may beintegrally formed with the housing 810. Optionally, a clamp 895 may beattached to the housing 810 and extend around a majority of the firstend 811 of the housing 810 to help secure housing 810 to the handlebarof the vehicle. The clamp 895 may include the stop 890 that contacts thecontact region 835 to prevent rotational movement of the lever 830 whena force is applied to the inboard region 837. The lever pivot 834location may allow for a user to keep their hand on the brake lever 830at all times to help improve the safety for a user, where an indexfinger and middle finger of a user may be located inboard of the leverpivot 834 on the inboard region 837 and a ring finger and pinky fingerof a user may be located outward of the lever pivot 834 on the outboardregion 838. Thus, when a user applies a force to the inboard region 837of the brake lever 830 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 830 with anindex and middle finger inboard of the lever pivot 834 between the firstend 831 and the lever pivot 834), the interaction between the contactregion 835 and the stop 890 prevents rotational movement of the lever830 to prevent any accidental braking. To apply a braking force, a usermay apply a force, F, to the outboard region 838 of the lever 830 (e.g.,when a user squeezes the lever 830 outboard of the lever pivot 834between the second end 832 and the lever pivot 834), the lever 830 mayrotate toward the interior cavity 814 of the housing 810. As theoutboard region 838 of the lever 830 rotates toward the interior cavity814, the second end 862 of the bearing linkage 860 moves outboard and/orupward and toward the second end 26 of the hydraulic cylinder 16 causingthe piston 12 to move toward the second end 26 of the cylinder 16pushing the hydraulic fluid in hydraulic line 14 of a brake system 10 ofthe vehicle resulting in a brake engaging a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20.

As shown in FIGS. 45-46 , the bearing linkage 860 may have a first end861, a second end 862 opposite the first end 861, and bearing linkagebody 863 extending between the first end 861 and the second end 862. Thefirst end 861 may be pivotally connected the lever 830 at a firstlinkage pivot 847, and the second end 862 may be pivotally connected tothe piston 12 at a second linkage pivot 848. The second linkage pivot848 may be located near a rear surface 13 of the piston 12. The movementof the second end 862 of the bearing linkage 860 is configured to alsomove the piston 12. In addition, the linkage pivots 847, 848 may be apivotal connection that includes a pinned connection that may include aclevis and/or a receiver. For example, the second linkage pivot 848 mayinclude a clevis and pinned connection to allow the bearing linkage 860to rotate relative to the piston 12.

The housing 810 having a first or inboard end 811, a second or outboardend 812 opposite the inboard end 811, and a housing body 813 extendingbetween the inboard end 811 and the outboard end 812. The inboard end811 may have a side opening 815 that extends into an interior cavity814, and a lower opening 816 on the housing 810 that also extends intothe interior cavity 814. The outboard end 812 of the housing 810 mayinclude an access opening 819 to allow access to a bleeder stem 18 thatextends from the hydraulic cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may extendfrom the hydraulic cylinder 16 may also include an internal channel 19that extends through the bleeder stem 18 to be in fluid communicationwith the hydraulic cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may be a rigid tubethat is an end that is fixed with access opening 819, or may be aflexible tube that has one end fixed to the access opening 819 and theother end fixed to the cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may be arrangedadjacent an upper side of the hydraulic cylinder 16 and in some cases berouted through an aperture in the clamp 895.

The lever 830 may have a first end 831, a second end 832, and a leverbody 833 that extends from the first end 831 to the second end 832. Asdiscussed above, the lever 830 may be pivotally engaged with the housing810 at lever pivot 834. Lever pivot 834 may be located outboard of thefirst linkage pivot 847 that connects the bearing linkage 860 and thelever 830 and also outboard of the second linkage pivot 848. The secondlinkage pivot 848 may be located outboard of the first linkage pivot847. The lever 830 may be pivotally attached to the housing 810 at alever pivot 834 that is spaced a predetermined distance from a first end831 of the lever 830. The predetermined distance may be approximately 50percent of an overall length of the lever 830, where the overall lengthof the lever 830 is the distance from a first end 831 to the second end832. In some examples, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 25 percent and 50 percent of the overall length of the lever 830, orwithin a range of 35 percent and 45 percent of the overall length of thelever 830. Optionally, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 10 percent and 90 percent of the overall length of the lever 830, orwithin a range of 25 percent and 75 percent of the overall length of thelever 830. A portion of the lever body 833 may be enclosed in theinterior cavity 814 of the housing 810 while a portion of the lever body833 may extend through a lower opening 816 in the housing 810.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 45-46 , a force, F, applied to the lever830 in the outboard region 838 between the second end 832 and the leverpivot 834 may cause the lever 830 to rotate toward the interior cavity814 of the housing 810. As the lever 830 rotates, the second end 862 ofthe bearing linkage 860 may move upward and/or toward an outboard end812 of the housing 810 to push the piston 12 within the cylinder 16. InFIG. 45 , the lever 830 and bearing linkage 860 are in a normal or restposition. In FIG. 46 , the lever 830 has received a force, F, causingthe lever 830 to rotate upward toward an interior cavity 814 of thehousing 810 to an engaged position. As the lever 830 moves upwards, thesecond end 862 of the bearing linkage 860 may move upward and/oroutboard pushing the piston 12 into the cylinder 16 to push hydraulicfluid out of the cylinder 16 to engage a braking system with a wheel 25of the vehicle 20. Once the force, F, is removed the pressure in thehydraulic line 14 pushes the piston 12 and the bearing linkage 860 backto the normal or rest position.

FIGS. 47-48 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 902 arranged toactivate a hydraulic braking system 10 of a vehicle. Braking system 10in the example illustrated in FIGS. 47-48 may be a hydraulic brakingsystem with a hydraulic line 14 routed outside the handlebars such thatthe hydraulic line 14 is externally visible at the intersection of thegrip assembly 902 and the handlebars. For the example of FIGS. 47-48 ,the features are referred to using similar reference numerals under the“9xx” series of reference numerals, rather than “1xx” as used in theembodiment of FIGS. 1-11C, reference numerals “2xx” as used in theembodiment of FIGS. 12-14C, reference numerals under “3xx” as used inthe embodiment of FIGS. 16-20 , reference numerals under “4xx” as usedin the embodiment of FIGS. 21-25 , reference numerals under “5xx” asused in the embodiment of FIGS. 26-34 , reference numerals under “6xx”as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 35-39 , reference numerals under“7xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 40-44 , and reference numeralsunder “8xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 45-46 . Accordingly,certain features of the grip assembly 902 that were already describedabove with respect to grip assemblies 102, 202, 302, 402, 502, 602, 702,and 802 may be described in lesser detail, or may not be described atall. Grip assembly 902 may be connected to a brake system 10 that isarranged as a hydraulic brake system 10 with a hydraulic line 14 of thehydraulic braking system 10 routed outside the handlebar 22 of thevehicle 20. The grip assembly 902 may include a housing 910, and a lever930, where the lever 930 may be at least partially located within aninterior cavity 914 of the housing 910. The lever 930 may include aplunger pin 988 that is adjacent a rear surface 13 of the piston 12. Thepiston 12 may be slidably engaged with a hydraulic cylinder 16 to movethe hydraulic fluid within the hydraulic line 14 to engage the brakingsystem 10 of the vehicle. The hydraulic cylinder 16 may be anchored tothe housing 910. In some examples, the hydraulic cylinder 16 may extendthrough the lower opening 916 of the housing 910 and extend into thelever 930. The piston 12 may be slidably engaged with a hydrauliccylinder 16 to move the hydraulic fluid within the hydraulic line 14 toengage the braking system 10 of the vehicle. In addition, the hydrauliccylinder 16 may have a first end 24 that receives the piston 12, asecond end 26 opposite the first end 24. A bleeder stem 18 may attach toan exterior of the cylinder 16 and extend outboard to connect to anaccess opening 919 in the outboard end 912 of the housing 910. Thebleeder stem 18 may be in fluid communication with the cylinder andextend toward the inboard end 911 of the housing 910 and/or the inboardend 931 of the lever 930. The inboard end of the bleeder stem 18 maycomprise a nipple or other connection feature 28 to connect to ahydraulic line 14 of the vehicle brake system 10.

As in the other examples, the lever 930 may be pivotally attached to thehousing 910 at a lever pivot 934 that is spaced a predetermined distancefrom an inboard end 931 of the lever 930. The lever 930 may have acontact region 935 between the lever pivot 934 and the first end 931,where the contact region 935 may contact a stop 990 to preventrotational movement toward the inboard end 911 of the housing 910. Thestop 990 may positioned on the housing 910 and in some examples may beintegrally formed with the housing 910. Optionally, a clamp 995 may beattached to the housing 910 and extend around a majority of the firstend 911 of the housing 910 to help secure housing 910 to the handlebarof the vehicle. The clamp 995 may include the stop 990 that contacts thecontact region 935 to prevent rotational movement of the lever 930 whena force is applied to the inboard region 937. The lever pivot 934location may allow for a user to keep their hand on the brake lever 930at all times to help improve the safety for a user, where an indexfinger and middle finger of a user may be located inboard of the leverpivot 934 on the inboard region 937 and a ring finger and pinky fingerof a user may be located outward of the lever pivot 934 on the outboardregion 938. Thus, when a user applies a force to the inboard region 937of the brake lever 930 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 930 with anindex and middle finger inboard of the lever pivot 934 between the firstend 931 and the lever pivot 934), the interaction between the contactregion 935 and the stop 990 prevents rotational movement of the lever930 to prevent any accidental braking. To apply a braking force, a usermay apply a force, F, to the outboard region 938 of the lever 930 (e.g.,when a user squeezes the lever 930 outboard of the lever pivot 934between the second end 932 and the lever pivot 934), the lever 930 mayrotate toward the interior cavity 914 of the housing 910. As theoutboard region 938 of the lever 930 rotates toward the interior cavity914, the plunger pin 988 may move outboard and/or upward toward thesecond end 26 of the hydraulic cylinder 16 causing the piston 12 to movetoward the second end 26 of the cylinder 16 pushing the hydraulic fluidin hydraulic line 14 of a brake system 10 of the vehicle resulting in abrake engaging a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20.

As shown in FIGS. 47-48 , the lever 930 may have a first end 931, asecond end 932, and a lever body 933 that extends from the first end 931to the second end 932. As discussed above, the lever 930 may bepivotally engaged with the housing 910 at lever pivot 934. The lever 930may be pivotally attached to the housing 910 at a lever pivot 934 thatis spaced a predetermined distance from a first end 931 of the lever930. The predetermined distance may be approximately 50 percent of anoverall length of the lever 930, where the overall length of the lever930 is the distance from a first end 931 to the second end 932. In someexamples, the predetermined distance may be within a range of 25 percentand 50 percent of the overall length of the lever 930, or within a rangeof 35 percent and 45 percent of the overall length of the lever 930.Optionally, the predetermined distance may be within a range of 10percent and 90 percent of the overall length of the lever 930, or withina range of 25 percent and 75 percent of the overall length of the lever930. A portion of the lever body 933 may be enclosed in the interiorcavity 914 of the housing 910 while a portion of the lever body 933 mayextend through a lower opening 916 in the housing 910. The plunger pin988 may be connected to the lever 930 or integrally formed with thelever 930. The plunger pin 988 may be located outboard of the leverpivot 934 and in some cases, the plunger pin 988 may also be locatedbelow the lever pivot 934 (i.e., in a direction away from the loweropening 916 of the housing 910 toward the lever 930).

The housing 910 having a first or inboard end 911, a second or outboardend 912 opposite the inboard end 911, and a housing body 913 extendingbetween the inboard end 911 and the outboard end 912. The inboard end911 may have a side opening 915 that extends into an interior cavity914, and a lower opening 916 on the housing 910 that also extends intothe interior cavity 914. The outboard end 912 of the housing 910 mayinclude an access opening 919 to allow access to a bleeder stem 18 thatextends from the hydraulic cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may extendfrom the hydraulic cylinder 16 may also include an internal channel 19that extends through the bleeder stem 18 to be in fluid communicationwith the hydraulic cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may be a rigid tubethat is an end that is fixed with access opening 919, or may be aflexible tube that has one end fixed to the access opening 919 and theother end fixed to the cylinder 16. The bleeder stem 18 may be arrangedadjacent an upper side of the hydraulic cylinder 16 and in some cases berouted through an aperture in the clamp 995.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 47-48 , a force, F, applied to the lever930 in the outboard region 938 between the second end 932 and the leverpivot 934 may cause the lever 930 to rotate toward the interior cavity914 of the housing 910. As the lever 930 rotates, the plunger pin 988may move upward and/or outboard to push the piston 12 within thecylinder 16. In FIG. 47 , the lever 930 may be in a normal or restposition. In FIG. 48 , the lever 930 has received a force, F, causingthe lever 930 to rotate upward toward an interior cavity 914 of thehousing 910 to an engaged position. As the lever 930 moves upwards, theplunger pin 988 may rotate with the lever 930 to contact and push thepiston 12 into the cylinder 16 to push hydraulic fluid out of thecylinder 16 to engage a braking system with a wheel 25 of the vehicle20. Once the force, F, is removed the pressure in the hydraulic line 14pushes the piston 12 which in turn pushes back on the plunger pin 988 tomove the lever 930 back to the normal or rest position.

FIGS. 49-50 illustrate another exemplary grip assembly 1002 witharranged to activate a cable braking system 10 of a vehicle 20. For theexample of FIGS. 49-50 , the features are referred to using similarreference numerals under the “10xx” series of reference numerals, ratherthan “1xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-11C, reference numerals“2xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 12-14C, reference numeralsunder “3xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 16-20 , referencenumerals under “4xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 21-25 ,reference numerals under “5xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS. 26-34, reference numerals under “6xx” as used in the embodiment of FIGS.35-39 , reference numerals under “7xx” as used in the embodiment ofFIGS. 40-44 , reference numerals under “8xx” as used in the embodimentof FIGS. 45-46 , and reference numerals under “9xx” as used in theembodiment of FIGS. 47-48 .

Accordingly, certain features of the grip assembly 1002 that werealready described above with respect to grip assemblies 102, 202, 302,402, 502, 602, 702, 802, and 902 may be described in lesser detail, ormay not be described at all. Grip assembly 1002 may be connected to abrake system 10 that is arranged as a cable oriented brake system 10with a cable 32 routed inside or outside the handlebar 22. The gripassembly 1002 may include a housing 1010, and a lever 1030, where thelever 1030 may be at least partially located within an interior cavity1014 of the housing 1010. The lever 1030 may include a cable anchor 1092that is mounted on an internal surface of the lever 1030. The cableanchor 1092 may secure the cable (not shown in FIGS. 49-50 ) of thebrake system. As the lever 1030 rotates, the cable anchor 1092 rotatesin an outboard direction and pulls the cable of the braking system toengage a brake with a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20.

As in the other examples, the lever 1030 may be pivotally attached tothe housing 1010 at a lever pivot 1034 that is spaced a predetermineddistance from an inboard end 1031 of the lever 1030. The lever 1030 mayhave a contact region 1035 between the lever pivot 1034 and the firstend 1031, where the contact region 1035 may contact a stop 1090 toprevent rotational movement toward the inboard end 1011 of the housing1010. The stop 1090 may positioned on the housing 1010 and in someexamples may be integrally formed with the housing 1010. Optionally, aclamp 1095 may be attached to the housing 1010 and extend around amajority of the first end 1011 of the housing 1010 to help securehousing 1010 to the handlebar of the vehicle. The clamp 1095 may includethe stop 1090 that contacts the contact region 1035 to preventrotational movement of the lever 1030 when a force is applied to theinboard region 1037. In addition, the clamp 1095 may also include areceiver 1098 that receives the cable casing. The cable may extend fromthe cable anchor 1092 to outside the grip assembly 1002 and along theoutside of the handlebar and then to other brake components of the brakesystem.

The lever pivot 1034 location may allow for a user to keep their hand onthe brake lever 1030 at all times to help improve the safety for a user,where an index finger and middle finger of a user may be located inboardof the lever pivot 1034 on the inboard region 1037 and a ring finger andpinky finger of a user may be located outward of the lever pivot 1034 onthe outboard region 1038. Thus, when a user applies a force to theinboard region 1037 of the brake lever 1030 (e.g., when a user squeezesthe lever 1030 with an index and middle finger inboard of the leverpivot 1034 between the first end 1031 and the lever pivot 1034), theinteraction between the contact region 1035 and the stop 1090 preventsrotational movement of the lever 1030 to prevent any accidental braking.To apply a braking force, a user may apply a force, F, to the outboardregion 1038 of the lever 1030 (e.g., when a user squeezes the lever 1030outboard of the lever pivot 1034 between the second end 1032 and thelever pivot 1034), the lever 1030 may rotate toward the interior cavity1014 of the housing 1010. As the outboard region 1038 of the lever 1030rotates toward the interior cavity 1014, the cable anchor 1092 may moveoutboard and/or upward the cable of a brake system 10 of the vehicleresulting in a brake engaging a wheel 25 of the vehicle 20.

As shown in FIGS. 49-50 , the lever 1030 may have a first end 1031, asecond end 1032, and a lever body 1033 that extends from the first end1031 to the second end 1032. As discussed above, the lever 1030 may bepivotally engaged with the housing 1010 at lever pivot 1034. The lever1030 may be pivotally attached to the housing 1010 at a lever pivot 1034that is spaced a predetermined distance from a first end 1031 of thelever 1030. The predetermined distance may be approximately 50 percentof an overall length of the lever 1030, where the overall length of thelever 1030 is the distance from a first end 1031 to the second end 1032.In some examples, the predetermined distance may be within a range of 25percent and 50 percent of the overall length of the lever 1030, orwithin a range of 35 percent and 45 percent of the overall length of thelever 1030. Optionally, the predetermined distance may be within a rangeof 10 percent and 90 percent of the overall length of the lever 1030, orwithin a range of 25 percent and 75 percent of the overall length of thelever 1030. A portion of the lever body 1033 may be enclosed in theinterior cavity 1014 of the housing 1010 while a portion of the leverbody 1033 may extend through a lower opening 1016 in the housing 1010.The cable anchor 1092 may formed separately and be connected to thelever 1030 or may be integrally formed with the lever 1030. The cableanchor 1092 may be located inboard of the lever pivot 1034 and in somecases, the cable anchor 1092 may also be located below the lever pivot1034 (i.e., in a direction away from the lower opening 1016 of thehousing 1010 toward the lever 1030).

The housing 1010 having a first or inboard end 1011, a second oroutboard end 1012 opposite the inboard end 1011, and a housing body 1013extending between the inboard end 1011 and the outboard end 1012. Theinboard end 1011 may have a side opening 1015 that extends into aninterior cavity 1014, and a lower opening 1016 on the housing 1010 thatalso extends into the interior cavity 1014.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 49-50 , a force, F, applied to the lever1030 in the outboard region 1038 between the second end 1032 and thelever pivot 1034 may cause the lever 1030 to rotate toward the interiorcavity 1014 of the housing 1010. As the lever 1030 rotates, the cableanchor 1092 move with the lever 1030 to pull the cable of the brakingsystem to engage the brake. In FIG. 49 , the lever 1030 may be in anormal or rest position. In FIG. 50 , the lever 1030 has received aforce, F, causing the lever 1030 to rotate upward toward an interiorcavity 1014 of the housing 1010 to an engaged position. As the lever1030 moves upwards, the cable anchor 1092 may rotate with the lever 1030to pull the cable toward an outboard end 1012 of the housing 1010 toengage the braking system. Once the force, F, is removed the tension inthe cable pulls the cable anchor 1092 along with the lever 1030 back tothe normal or rest position.

The present disclosure is disclosed above and in the accompanyingdrawings with reference to a variety of examples and embodiments. Thepurpose served by the disclosure, however, is to provide examples of thevarious features and concepts related to the disclosure, not to limitthe scope of the disclosure. One skilled in the relevant art willrecognize that numerous variations and modifications may be made to theaspects described above without departing from the scope of the presentinvention, as defined by the appended claims. The claims are not to belimited to details of the preferred embodiment except as stated to existin the claims, and definitions of claim terms are not to be used as asubterfuge to limit the claims to details of the preferred embodimentsby defining claim terms narrowly such that they incorporate details ofthe preferred embodiment.

1. (canceled)
 2. A grip assembly for a vehicle comprising: a housinghaving a first end, a second end opposite the first end, and a housingbody extending between the first end and the second end, the first endof the housing has a first opening that extends into an interior cavity,and a second opening located on a bottom side of the housing opposite atop side that extends into the interior cavity, wherein the firstopening receives a handlebar of the vehicle; a lever having a first end,a second end opposite the first end, and a lever body extending betweenthe first end and the second end, the lever being pivotally connected tothe housing at a lever pivot that is located a predetermined distancefrom the first end of the lever; wherein the lever also includes aninboard region located between the first end of the lever and the leverpivot and configured to contact an index finger of a user and anoutboard region located between the second end of the lever and thelever pivot and configured for a pinky finger of the user; a pivotlinkage having a first end pivotally engaged with the housing and asecond end opposite the first end; a bearing linkage having a first endwith a first roller bearing and a second end opposite the first end thatis pivotally engaged with the pivot linkage at a pivot connection,wherein the first roller bearing moves along an interior surface of thehousing; and wherein when the outboard region of the lever rotatestoward the interior cavity of the housing, the first end of the bearinglinkage moves away from the first end of the housing.
 3. The gripassembly of claim 2, wherein the inboard region has a contact regionthat contacts a stop to prevent rotational movement of the lever towardthe housing when a force is applied to the inboard region.
 4. The gripassembly of claim 2, wherein the bearing linkage is connected to a cableof a brake system.
 5. The grip assembly of claim 2, wherein an interiorbearing surface of the lever contacts a second roller bearing arrangedat the pivot connection.
 6. The grip assembly of claim 5, wherein theinterior bearing surface comprises a convex curved surface.
 7. The gripassembly of claim 3, wherein the stop that contacts the contact regionis integrally formed with the housing.
 8. The grip assembly of claim 3,wherein a clamp secures the handlebar to the housing, and wherein theclamp forms the stop that contacts the contact region.
 9. The gripassembly of claim 2, wherein the predetermined distance is within arange of 10 percent and 90 percent of an overall length of the lever.10. A grip assembly for a vehicle comprising: a housing having a firstend, a second end opposite the first end, and a housing body extendingbetween the first end and the second end, wherein the first end has afirst opening that extends into an interior cavity, and a second openingof the housing that extends into the interior cavity, wherein the firstopening receives a handlebar of the vehicle; a lever having a first end,a second end opposite the first end, and a lever body extending betweenthe first end and the second end, the lever pivotally connected to thehousing at a lever pivot that is located a predetermined distance fromthe first end of the lever, wherein the lever includes an inboard regionlocated between the first end of the lever and the lever pivot andconfigured to contact an index finger of a user and an outboard regionlocated between the second end of the lever and the lever pivot andconfigured for a pinky finger of the user; a bearing linkage having afirst end pivotally connected to the lever at a first linkage pivot anda second end of the bearing linkage connected to a cable anchor oppositethe first end of the bearing linkage; a swing linkage having a first endpivotally connected to the second end of the bearing linkage at a secondlinkage pivot and a second end of the swing linkage pivotally connectedto the housing at a third linkage pivot; and wherein when the outboardregion of the lever rotates toward the interior cavity, the second endof the bearing linkage moves away from the first end of the housing. 11.The grip assembly of claim 10, the inboard region having a contactregion that contacts a stop to prevent rotational movement of the leverwhen a force is applied to the inboard region.
 12. The grip assembly ofclaim 11, wherein a clamp secures the handlebar to the housing, andwherein the clamp forms the stop that contacts the contact region. 13.The grip assembly of claim 12, wherein the clamp includes an aperturethat receives a cable from a brake system, wherein the cable connects tothe cable anchor and extends through the aperture.
 14. The grip assemblyof claim 10, wherein the predetermined distance is within a range of 25percent and 50 percent of an overall length of the lever.
 15. The gripassembly of claim 10, wherein the housing includes an aperture thatreceives a cable from a brake system, wherein the cable connects to thecable anchor and extends through the aperture and into the handlebar.16. The grip assembly of claim 15, wherein the aperture includes atapered opening that leads to a receiver configured to receive a cablecasing.
 17. A grip assembly for a vehicle comprising: a housing having afirst end, a second end opposite the first end, and a housing bodyextending between the first end and the second end, wherein the firstend has a first opening that extends into an interior cavity, and asecond opening of the housing that extends into the interior cavity,wherein the first opening receives a handlebar of the vehicle; a leverhaving a first end, a second end opposite the first end, and a leverbody extending between the first end and the second end, the leverpivotally connected to the housing at a lever pivot that is located apredetermined distance from the first end of the lever, wherein thelever includes an inboard region located between the first end of thelever and the lever pivot and configured to contact an index finger of auser and an outboard region located between the second end of the leverand the lever pivot and configured for a pinky finger of the user; abearing linkage having a first end pivotally connected to the lever at afirst linkage pivot and a second end of the bearing linkage connected toa piston, wherein the piston is slidably connected to a hydrauliccylinder that connects to a hydraulic line that is part of a hydraulicbraking system; and wherein when the outboard region of the leverrotates toward the interior cavity, the second end of the bearinglinkage pushes on the piston.
 18. The grip assembly of claim 17, whereinthe hydraulic cylinder is secured within the interior cavity of thehousing.
 19. The grip assembly of claim 18, wherein the hydraulic lineextends from the hydraulic cylinder and then extends into the handlebarof the vehicle.
 20. The grip assembly of claim 17, wherein the hydrauliccylinder is secured to the lever.
 21. The grip assembly of claim 20,wherein the hydraulic line extends from the hydraulic cylinder and thenextends outside of the handlebar of the vehicle.